Elsword: The Magician
by WolfenVaHeron
Summary: Elsword is a student by day, a vigilante by night. His classmate, Aisha, despises Elsword, yet is infatuated with The Magician, which happens to be Elsword.
1. Chapter 1: The Magician

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Major Characters in the series (not all will be introduced immediately):**

**Elsword Rune Slayer (16)**

**Aisha Elemental Master (16)**

**Chung Iron Paladin/Deadly Chaser (16)**

**Raven Reckless Fist (18)**

**Ara Sakra Devanam (17)**

**Rena Grand Archer (?)**

**Eve Code Battle Seraph (?)**

**Edan [BM's epic NPC] (24)**

* * *

_City of Velder, 12:01am_

"Hurry up! We don't know how long it'll be before that alarm goes off." a man said in a hushed voice.

"Don't rush me! Otherwise we'll trip the sound alarm." A man in a wolf like mask replied.

"Well, make it snappy" the man said as he walked out of the shadow and into the moonlit room. His hair was a light brown; long enough to be called shaggy even. He had a scar on his right eye, an accident from a unsuccessful heist. A blunder that had resulted his name and face being spread in wanted posters throughout the town, leaving him unable to walk around the city in daylight.

His name was Banthus. Banthus the Thief.

"Is it open yet?" Banthus asked his subordinate, Toby.

"Not yet, I almost got it" he replied to his boss.

They were in the back room of the Velder National Bank, trying to unlock the safe that contained ED and valuables from all over country. It had taken them 10 minutes to put a stall on the alarm, and another 30 minutes to get past any other security. It was their biggest job yet. The only job that could fix Bantus' failing reputation.

However, before they could say another word, a voice spoke out from the dark.

"So, up to no good I take it?"

In shock, the two thieves turned around to see a boy with white hair, wearing a black mask that covered all of his face except his blue eyes, a black coat (think Luto's Remains costume with a glaive mask), and a blunt sword slung over his shoulder. Banthus had met him once before, and barely escaped with his freedom.

"You gotta be kidding me, it's the Magician!" Toby yelled in fear, realizing after he yelled that he had set off the sound alarm.

"Break for it!" Banthus yelled, making his way for the door. However, he was suddenly blocked by a set of magic runes.

"You're not getting away this time Banthus" the boy spoke, holding out his blade. Toby was already down on the floor and unconscious.

"Well, if I'm going to go to prison…I'll take you with me!" Banthus exclaimed as he pulled out his scimitar and rushed toward the Magician. However, the magician dodged Banthus' uppercut slash easily, then taking advantage of the opening to swing his sword right into Banthus' ribs, knocking Banthus to the side. Banthus got back up, but cradled his rib cage with his left arm. He then went for a horizontal slash from the right, but it was useless as the boy blocked it with his own sword.

Then, with his free hand, the Magician punched Banthus right in the ribs, his fist exploding on impact, launching Banthus right into the wall, knocking him out.

The Magician took a breath of relief and started to speak "Well, that takes care of tha-"

However, he was cut off by the sound of police sirens.

"And that's my cue to leave!" He said, a smirk appearing behind his mask. He then put a quick rune on the wall, his calling card, and then used some runes to quickly climb up toward the window he came in from, jumping out the window seconds before the front doors of the bank were broken down.

"THIS IS THE VELDER POLICE! COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP!" A voice yelled over a megaphone. After a minute or so, the police found Banthus and Toby down on the ground, as well as the rune on the wall.

Then a man in a red officer's coat walked in, his amber eyes looking through the crime scene, until he noticed the rune on the wall, which led to his straight face turning into a scowl. "The vigilante again?" he said in annoyance as he looked at the wall. He then looked at one of his officers and spoke "Search the perimeter! And someone get this rune off the wall before the media get here!" He then walked back toward the front and towards his car. He was annoyed at the fact the 5th time, the vigilante called 'The Magician' had managed to beat the police to the punch. Although he could understand the desire for justice, the officer was annoyed at the fact it was making the Velder Police look bad.

He had decided if anything, if they caught the Magician one day, he would at least make sure to give him a nice and long lecture about the proper channels for dealing with criminals.

"Captain Edan! The media wants to look at the crime scene" One of his subordinates spoke as he rushed toward his superior officer.

Edan grumbled. He assumed his officers hadn't gotten the rune off the wall yet. He knew the media would make a huge story out of it. And he knew he would get a headache from all the phones itelike that for the past week.

"Fine. Let them through. We'll deal with the fanfare in the morning" He said, with a hint of annoyance in his voice as the officer saluted and walked toward the media vans. He would have another report to write about how they were beaten to the punch again. And he hated writing those.

* * *

_A few miles away from the crime scene_

A figure was running across the rooftops in the moonlight, his trademark white hair flowing behind him. He then slowed down as he reached a set of apartments, and jumped down onto the outside patio of an apartment on the fifth floor of the complex. He then took out a key and unlocked the door. He then walked to the bed and lied down for a minute.

"A job well done, and still chased by the cops. Doesn't anyone respect vigilante justice anymore?" he spoke with a smirk on his face. He then got up and took off his mask and coat, laying them on the coffee table. His eyes turned crimson not long after due to the magic of the mask wearing off. He then waved his hand next to his hair, and like magic, the color changed from snow white to a crimson red. Afterwards, he grabbed the coat and mask and put them in his closet.

He then walked toward the fridge to get himself something to drink, but stopped when he noticed his calendar. The box that represented tomorrow was circled with red marker, and the black ink in the circle had given him all the reason to mope.

'Midterms Test Day' was what was written in the ink.

"Ah Crap" The Rune Slayer moped.

His name is Elsword Rune Sieghart. A student by day, and the vigilante 'The Magician' by night.

* * *

**Elsword: Dang, Banthus went down easy**

**WVH: I know right?**

**Aisha: Wait, I didn't get any text-time this chapter? What the heck Wolf?**

**Rena, Eve, Ara, Raven, &amp; Chung: And what about us?**

**WVH: Don't worry, all of you will get some time in next chapter**

**Edan: Just be happy you're even included in this story…and Wolf…if you don't let me catch 'The Magician', I'll be annoyed**

**WVH: eheheheh…about that…**

**Edan: About what?**

**WVH: Anyhow, if you enjoyed this, please R&amp;R**

**Edan: Hey! Don't you dare ignore m-**


	2. Chapter 2: Day Life

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

* * *

_Mid-Income Residential Distrcit, City of Velder, 6:30am_

In a bedroom colored purple and lined on almost every side with bookshelves. A young girl with purple hair was sleeping on her desk.

"Aisha, you up?" A voice spoke from behind the bedroom door.

It had no effect.

"Aisha…wake up." The voice spoke again.

She was still snoring.

The door opened, revealing a woman with similar hair. She looked around the room and saw her sister, Aisha, sleeping at her desk, with a multitude of textbooks surrounding her on her desk and floor.

The woman then yelled "AISHA, WAKE UP!" This time, it had effect, as Aisha slowly opened her eyes, picking up her head from the desk. "Oh morning sis" she said in a tired voice.

"Did you forget what you have today?" her sister, Noah, said.

Aisha looked at her for a minute, until the realization hit her. "OH CRAP!"

"You stood up too late studying, didn't you?" Noah said, with a sigh.

"Yeah I did. I'll just grab a bagel for breakfast" she said in a quick tone, rushing past her sister and toward the stairs.

"Okay, but are you going to you midterms in that?" her sister spoke with a smirk on her face.

Aisha stopped, looked down, and noticed she was still in her pajamas. "Oh El, thank you sis" she spoke as she rushed back into her room to change.

"I swear, she must have been the only one to stay up so late to study" Noah said with a sigh as she walked down the stairs.

* * *

_Meanwhile across town…_

Elsword had two bags under his eyes. He had been studying for the past six hours, and due to his 'night job', he had gotten absolutely no sleep. He closed the textbook in his hands and let out a short yawn.

"Next time…I need to remember to study first…then vigilante stuff" he said with a tired voice. He then walked over to the kitchen to grab himself some coffee before going to the bathroom mirror to get himself ready for the day. And as he styled his hair, he thought _At least this isn't as bad as when Sensei made me stay up 3 days straight_. He then shuddered at the memory, trying to forget about it as he went to grab his bag and leave for school.

* * *

_30 minutes later, Velder Academy, City of Velder_

Aisha slumped onto her desk, still tired while waiting for the coffee to kick in. she had been up until 2am studying for this, with tiredness being the only side effect.

"Hey Aish'! Stay up too late studying?" asked a cheery voice that Aisha recognized well.

"Hey Rena!" she said, turning around to talk to the cheery, blond elf, Rena's cheeriness helping wake her up. "Yeah, wanted to be prepared"

"That's you!" Rena exclaimed. Her cheery mood always cheered people up, even Raven, the junior with black hair that always hung out on the roof.

Aisha then asked "So, you study at all?"

"A little…" Rena mumbled.

"So, I'll take that as a no"

"Says the bookworm" she replied with a pouty face.

Before Aisha could reply to that, a certain redhead that Aisha despised walked into the room, but unlike usual, he just walked to his desk like a zombie and slumped into the desk.

"You ok dood?" the blond boy with long hair asked as Elsword slumped on his desk.

"Please….don't ask…" he mumbled. It was clear he was tired…VERY tired.

"Wow, he must have stayed up even later than you did" Rena said, looking toward the boy.

"Meh, if anything, he probably played video games all night" Aisha said with a tone of annoyance.

She despised Elsword ever since they first became classmates in junior high. He always slept through half of his classes, flipped up her skirt, made jokes about her chest, and still managed to get good grades. He even did better than her in their last history test. In her thoughts, he was lazy and wasted his intellect on coming up with new pranks.

"Also, did you hear about the Magician's latest feat?" Rena asked, trying to bring them to a different topic.

It worked. "Yeah! He stopped Banthus from robbing the bank and left them for the cops!" Aisha said, with a tone of excitement in her voice. They began to talk about it, thinking of how the white-haired vigilante may have fought them. Elsword overheard this, and while looking down on his desk, made a slight grin no one could see.

When he had just started being a vigilante, he had happened to stop a kidnapping a year or so back. After he had taken down the perpetrator, he had turned to see none other than Aisha being the victim that he just saved. He remembered her look of gratitude when he gave her back her bag.

_Maybe I should ask her out sometime. _He thought to himself.

Then a voice in his head, the lesson 'Never get innocents involved' he learned from his sensei, reminded him of why he hadn't done so. _No, I can't. I don't want to get her involved and get her hurt_, remembering the look on her face as her kidnapper, terrified, right before he stepped in.

The two groups then pulled themselves back to reality as the door opened as Ms. Stella walked in, holding a folder containing what everyone in the room presumed as the English midterm.

"Alright, everyone shut up, I'll pass you your test, finish within an hour, and hand it in. I don't care what you do afterwards as long as you stay quiet." she spoke in her stern tone known to all.

_Well, here goes nothing_ Elsword thought as the tests began to be handed out.

* * *

_Several hours later…_

"Finally done…ugh" Elsword said, a slight amount of victory in his voice, but still sleepy.

"It's ok, you probably did well anyhow" his blond friend, Chung, said as he walked next to the Rune Slayer.

"I swear, if I can, I'm never going to do an all-nighter EVER again." he said, even though he knew his other life contradicted that statement.

A little further back, Aisha and Rena were talking about what they were going to do for the weekend.

"So, have any plans Rena?"

"Well, I sorta have a meeting with someone" Rena said, blushing slightly.

Aisha picked this up quickly "A meeting, eh?... so who's the lucky guy?"

Rena's face suddenly turned red as she started waving her hands in front of her "It's not like that!"

"Sureeee…"

However, Rena had a comeback for this "Says The Magician's No.1 fangirl" she said with a giggle.

"Hey!" Aisha replied, face red and pouty. Then after she calmed down, she said "Well, give me a call if you want to go do something"

As she walked through a small portion of town, a pair of eyes looked at her from an alley, comparing her to a picture of her that had been taken a year ago.

"And there's my target" the voice that the eyes belonged to said.

* * *

** Elsword: Well…that's a cliffhanger ending if I've seen one**

** Aisha: Please tell me it's just a stalker**

** WVH: No promises**

** Aisha: *shivers***

** Rena and Chung: So are we just supporting characters atm?**

** WVH: Yeah XD**

** Raven, Eve, and Ara: WHAT ABOUT US?**

** WVH: Don't worry, you'll get some text time soon, I promise!**

** Raven: I'm gonna hold you to that**

** WVH: ahahahha…anyhow, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone!**


	3. Chapter 3: Love and War

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

* * *

_City Streets, City Of Velder, 9:00pm_

On one of the side streets, Aisha was making her way home after some off campus lessons from her master. He was a kind man, yet at times very strict. It was thanks to his extra lessons though that she had been able to complete the test for 'Elemental Master', which was hard enough that most people who chose the path stopped at high magician.

However, lessons had run slightly late. She still had a little issue with wind magic. Every time she tried to cast whirlwind, it would lift up her skirt, she'd get embarrassed, lose concentration, and blow all the books off her master's bookshelves. By the time they were done, her master looked like he lost all hope while Aisha looked down with a red face.

She sighed, thinking _That was horrible…I'm glad master was the only one there…if anyone else was there…it would be embarrassing, and if that Elbrat even heard about it, he wouldn't let me live it down_.

She sighed again, but was cut off as a cloth was suddenly covered her mouth. She instinctively kicked out, stomping the man behind her squarely in the foot, loosening his grip.

She then began to run so she could get room to cast a spell, but it didn't last long, as she bumped into a large bulky man, who quickly grabbed her by her shirt and put another cloth over her mouth. She tried kicking and punching, but it was to no avail.

Her eyesight faded to black.

* * *

_Near the docks, City Of Velder, 10:00pm_

Elsword, in his Magician attire, had been following this black van for a while.

After taking a nap earlier, he had got into his attire and began his nightly patrol as 'The Magician'. 30 minutes ago, he had spotted a black van. He had heard a good amount of rumors a few days before about people seeing a black van on certain days. And those days happened to coincide with days when people were identified as missing the day after.

His info broker, Lowe, had told him the police had tried to investigate it before, but to no avail as every time they tried to make a set up, the van wouldn't come. Both of them suspected it was likely due to a mole in the police force.

Even though it happened to be coincidence that he saw the van, he decided to follow it, considering this was a one-time chance he could get to putting a stop to the kidnappings, and maybe find the missing people as well.

He then saw the van pulling into the docks, and so, followed it by jumping up onto the warehouse buildings. As he quietly walked across them, he worked to mentally prepare himself for what would probably be a hard fight.

He took a few short breaths, and then breathed less and less, until he had lowered his heartbeat to the point that if anyone tried to look for his presence or heartbeat, they would find nothing.

He then walked toward the edge of the warehouse, only to suddenly lose his focus as he saw the scene before him.

He was right about the missing people being kidnapped.

But of all people, he didn't expect to see a certain purple haired girl to be the one gagged and tied up.

_Crap, this is bad. Of all the people they had to kidnap, it had to be her _he thought, trying to keep himself from going down there.

"This the girl?" one of the kidnappers from the van asked.

_If I wait to save her, I might find out where all their hostages are._

"Yeah, she put up a little of a fight, but nothing me and my men couldn't handle" replied a bulky man on the opposite side of the people from the van.

_But if I wait too long, they migh-_

Suddenly, Aisha, having successfully pulled off the gag enough to speak, screamed "SOMEONE HELP!"

"Shut up brat!" The bulky man yelled, punching her in the gut.

"Hey, don't damage the goods too much Keith"

Then Elsword couldn't take it anymore as he saw Aisha's face in torment.

_Screw it!_

He then jumped off the building, casting a Luna Blade, which landed between Aisha and her captors.

Aisha, looking at him in awe, spoke "No way, The Magician!?"

The bulky man recovered first, yelling to his subordinates "Don't just stand there! KILL HIM!"

The Magician then jumped off his blade and landed a drop kick on one of Keith's men, knocking him out. As he landed, he then quickly took out his blade, and dodged the next captor's blade while hitting him with his dull blade in the back of the man's head.

The next one had drawn out a gun and proceeded to shoot the vigilante, who parried every single one of his shots and punched him square in the stomach, leaving the man gasping for air as he fell.

He then turned to see the van group trying to make a rush for Aisha, which the Magician quickly stopped as he set off a set of runes he had placed on the ground near her, unleashing a sword wave which sent them flying.

"So you're the infamous Magician I've heard so much about" The bulky man spoke.

Elsword turned to see the man drawing out his blade, and while doing so, replied to the man's comment.

"And you're the oh-so-infamous kidnappers I keep hearing about"

"I see, I guess that means that we can't come to some agreement to keep this quiet?"

"Not a chance in hell" the Magician said, readying his blade.

Meanwhile, Aisha lied on the ground in awe of the spectacle as the two began to fight. Her hero from the past had appeared to save her yet again.

_Am I dreaming? Because if this is a dream, please don't let anyone wake me up _she thought, looking at the Magician in admiration.

But it then turned into fear as the vigilante was blinded as Keith kicked some gravel into the boy's face, and proceeded to attack with a flurry of slashes. The Magician nearly dodged the sudden attack, getting cut on his arm and leg. She then began to become scared for the boy's life as the boy's blood began to drip toward the ground.

"Now that was cheap" the Magician said, slowly breathing heavier and heavier.

"Well, they say all is fair in love and war, and this is war" Keith replied with a smirk on his face.

"Is that so? Then I'll end this in one move" the Magician exclaimed, his voice filled with determination.

"If that's what you want, then die!" the captor yelled as he rushed toward Elsword.

What happened next was almost instant. The boy parried the sword to the side and then threw a punch that exploded on impact.

Right in the man's groin.

Keith was launched down the concrete a bit. He was barely conscious as he looked at the approaching Magician.

"NOW that was cheap, bastard." Keith said as he coughed up blood.

"True, but you're the one who said all is fair" the Magician said, his tone telling anyone who heard he had a smirk on his face.

"heheheh…true, I guess that means neither of us wins" Keith said as a large grin appeared on his face.

Suddenly, the magician heard a short scream and a splash from behind him. Two of Keith's men had not only gotten back up, but it looked like they just threw something in the water. He quickly glanced over to where Aisha was earlier, and quickly realized what just happened.

"SHIT!" he yelled as he tried to rush toward the water, only to be stopped by more of the captors who happened to get back up. He parried their strikes, planted runes on them, and jumped over them as the runes exploded, one by one. By the time he had gotten to the last one, he saw the bubbles from the water begin to slow down.

"OUT OF MY WAY!" he yelled as he unleashed a mega slash, passing right through the man's guard and tossing him to the ground. As he got closer to the water, he sheathed his blade, took off his mask, and as he jumped, he thought

_Please make it in time!_

* * *

_In the water at the docks, two minutes prior_

Aisha had just been thrown into the water, barely having enough time to scream. Being tied up had kept her from being able to swim. She struggled to try to get them off, but it was to no avail.

_Is this where I'm going to die?_ she thought as she slowly stopped struggling, falling deeper into the depths of the water.

Her life began to flash before her eyes. Her childhood, her time at school, her lessons with her master, even the pranks Elsword pulled on her at school. The last thing she thought back to was her first meeting with the Magician, and the last words he said to her then.

"_Don't worry, if creeps like that attack you again, I'll be there, and I'll protect you. No matter what"_

As her vision turned dark, she caught a glimpse of red.

A crimson red.

* * *

_A few minutes later…_

Aisha felt air rushing into her lungs. It was warm, bringing her back from the brink of death. She noticed that a small bit of warmth from her back.

_Is someone holding me?_

Then she felt her lips grow colder, as she felt something pushing down on her chest.

_What is this?_

Then the warmth returned to her lips once more. She noticed it felt moist.

She started to open her eyes. She saw white. Wet, white hair.

_Wait, white hair? Wet white hair? OH MY EL!_

Her eyes grew wide as she realized she was kissing The Magician.

But her eyes grew even wider as his mouth left hers and his eyes opened.

They weren't the clear blue eyes she was expecting.

They were red. A crimson red.

And she recognized his face the second she saw it. Her face turned into embarrassed shock.

_Oh. My. Lady. El._

"You ok Aisha?" he asked.

She suddenly crawled away from him as fast as she could, her face red and flustered.

"Elsword!? You're the Magician!? And what the hell were you doing to me!?"

"I'll take that as a yes. And I just saved you from drowning and gave you CPR, ok?" he said, trying to look away, his face red as well.

"CPR!? That was my first kiss dammit!" she yelled as she punched him on the shoulder, he winced. She then noticed his wounds. He was still bleeding a little, and she realized it must have hurt swimming in the ocean the way he was.

"I'm sorry, are you ok?" she said, her tone filled with worry.

"I'll be fine" he said as he grabbed his mask off the ground and began to stand up. He then stumbled a little as he tried to stand on his injured leg.

"No you're not!" she yelled, but not in anger, but in worry for him. "Here" she said as she put his arm on her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Elsword asked as she helped pick him up.

"I have to at least repay you for saving me, ok?" she said, blushing and trying not to look at him in the eye.

He looked at for a moment, but then let out a short sigh and looked at her. He then gave her a smile, a gentle smile.

"..Alright, thank you, Aisha"

That remark made Aisha blush even more, as the two of them then walked away from the scene.

But Elsword's thoughts were slightly different. He may have been grateful and a little embarrassed. But something else lingered in his mind.

He involved an innocent. One he wanted to protect.

* * *

**Elsword: dang that was a long chapter**

**WVH: Yeah, I got on a little bit of a typing spree, and everything went together, so I decided to put it in one chapter**

**Elsword: True**

**Aisha: Over do much?**

**WVH: Maybe. So, enjoy your little kiss?**

**Elsword &amp; Aisha: *Look away from each other and blush***

**WVH: And here's some quick responses to reviews from the last chapter!**

** xElsa-Well then, I hope you enjoy the rest of the series**

** Arrow-chan3-Does this chapter answer your questions? XD**

**WVH: Well then, I'll do another chapter next week or so, and we'll go into Elsword's backstory!**

**Elsword: sweet!**

**Rena &amp; Chung: We didn't get any text time this time…**

**Raven, Ara, &amp; Eve: Oh Wolfen….**

**WVH: Well…I gotta go, don't forget to R&amp;R! *runs from the mob of chars he promised text time***


	4. Chapter 4: Memories

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Note: Yes, the OC gets his first appearance in this chapter...and this is a longer chapter too...**

* * *

_Velder Docks, City of Velder, 1:30am_

Edan watched as his subordinates carried away the unconscious criminals into vehicles that would take them to the prison. A few of them would have to stay at intensive care though, especially the one that had, as Edan saw it, took an explosion to the groin.

And despite the fact they were on opposite sides of the law, he couldn't help but feel some pity for the man. Any guy would think so considering how shredded up his 'privates' were.

It was only an hour earlier when he was sitting in his office, drinking a cup of joe, when he and everyone else in the station heard an explosion. After figuring out where the explosion came from, he had taken 5 teams of officers with him over to the docks. What they found was a black van, about fifteen men lying on the ground, and a small pool of blood.

They had been searching for that van for weeks, and had essentially given up. It wasn't Edan's choice though. His superiors called it off as a 'waste of resources' and ordered Edan to stop the investigation.

He honestly hated his superiors. Half the time, he felt like a lot of their decisions were based off of their greed. Any time a case went over budget or lasted too long, they ordered it to be discarded. But it was part of the reason he joined the force in the first place. He wanted to wipe away the corruption from the inside. Meaning one day, he planned to make his way to the top.

_This ought to ruffle up my superiors a little…considering it was THEIR choice to discard the case _he thought as a small grin found its way on his face.

"Sir!" one of his sergeants yelled, cutting off Edan's thoughts.

"What do you have to report?" Edan replied, looking back once more at the crime scene.

"From what we found in the van, we believe that these are the criminals that have been behind the recent kidnappings."

"Good work, see if any of them are conscious" Edan replied, a small smirk appearing on his face.

"Still though….who do you think managed to take them down sir?" The sergeant asked before his captain could walk toward his car.

Edan considered this, cupping his chin with his hand, and said "Hmm…I could think of a few people…you'll just have to read the report later."

"But si-"

"Don't worry about it!" Edan said, cutting off the sergeant. "Just clean up the scene and whatnot, it's late" he said, walking toward his car and waving at his sergeant behind him.

He was in a good mood. Despite the fact he felt that it was likely the Magician's work, he smiled.

_Guess you're useful to me after all, Magician_ he thought as he closed the car door and started the ignition.

* * *

_Aisha's home, City of Velder, 1:30am_

The house was dark, no one was home, and it was dead silent.

Suddenly, the silence was broken as the sound of a lock being turned came from the front door. When it opened, it revealed Aisha still propping Elsword up on her shoulder, his wounds starting to clot. She took him over to the living room sofa and let him fall into it.

It had taken them what seemed to be an hour to get to her house. Not only was Elsword injured, but they had to constantly hide in back alleys to hide as police cars rushed past them on the streets. Fortunately, by the time they had to do so, they were in areas where there were no crowds at night, allowing them to move much more quickly without making a scene.

"Well, at least that's over" she said in relief as she went to flick the light switch, her other hand massaging her shoulder. It was sore from having to carry Elsword for so long.

"Yeah, for the moment" he said, looking at her with his bright crimson eyes. The moment of eye contact was enough to make Aisha remember their kiss. She quickly turned around before Elsword could see her blush.

"Anyway, I'm going to see if there are any bandages we can use. Be right back!" she said, walking into a door which Elsword could only presume was the kitchen.

He then took a look around his surroundings. The room was large enough to park a car and a half in. In Across from him there was a medium sized flat screen television, with the nearby wall holding up a few portraits, holding pictures of her, someone who looked like an older version of her, and two adults. _Family photos, huh_ he thought, but his face turned slightly grim, memories he wished he could forget flooding to the surface for the moment. He then took a look toward the end of the sofa, seeing a set of stairs that led up to the second floor.

He was suddenly cut off as the kitchen door opened once more, as Aisha walked through the opening, carrying a box with the first aid symbol on it.

"Alright, hold still while I do this please." She said, a slight blush appearing on her face.

"Well, it's not like I'm going anywhere" the boy replied with a smirk on his face.

Aisha then tried to look toward the side as she helped Elsword take off his shirt and pants so she could treat his wounds. He winced a little, but not enough to make her too worried.

After successfully managing to take off the shirt and pants, she decided to look in order to examine his wounds. But the second she did so, the part of her that still despised Elsword regretted it.

The boy was well toned, despite his slim build. She blushed even more, seeing his well toned chest as it rose and fell every time he breathed in and out.

"Umm…uhh" her face slowly grew redder and redder as she looked at him.

"Well?" Elsword said, snapping Aisha back into reality.

"Oh, r-right! Ummm" she replied, no longer focused on the boy's body, but the cuts on his arm and leg. They were clotted, yet when she touched them, he still winced. She then began to treat him, disinfecting and bandaging the wounds while trying to not to focus on Elsword's well toned muscles. Every now and then, he made a short "Ow!", but did not make any complaints, despites Aisha's expectations.

Once she finished, she put the extra supplies back in the box and stood up. "Alright, that should do for the moment" she said, backing away to a nearby chair with a slight blush on her face. She then sat down, looking at the boy, trying to put together just HOW Elsword could be the Magician.

She then asked him the question on her mind ever since he saved her earlier

"Elsword?"

"Yeah?" he replied, looking in her direction.

"…why do you fight? I mean, you have a life that most people would dream of having, friends, good grades, and barely having to do anything to get by." She asked him

He looked up at the ceiling, his face filled with reminiscence "…it's a long story…a long, painful story"

She was slightly surprised at his reaction. "It's ok if you don't want to talk about it" she said, looking toward the side, showing a little regret for bringing it up.

The boy closed his eyes and let out a sigh, following it by saying "No, it's alright. Might be good to get it off my chest" he paused, letting his memories come back to the surface once more.

"It all began six years ago. Back then, I lived in a small village named Ruben. I lived with my sister, and my parents died from an illness about a year or so after I was born. My sister and the village elder become my guardians after that. It was peaceful, living in that small house with my sister. Everyone knew each other, especially my sister, being the volunteeraholic she was. Sometimes it was a little too peaceful, so every now and then, I would pull a prank or two, just to liven things up." he said, a small smile appearing on his face.

Then his smile faded, as he began to speak once more "Then that peace was shattered. A group of masked soldiers suddenly appeared in the middle of the night" he paused for a moment, his eyes looking up toward the ceiling. "They captured any of the children they found, and in the case of adults, they either cut or shot them down." He continued, his eyes filled with pain from long ago.

"My sister tried to fight them off as we ran, but it wasn't enough. They shot her in the leg and knocked both of us out." he said. As he spoke, his voice spoke in a sadness he had never truly gotten over. "When I woke up, we were in a cage on a wagon…and behind us, the sky glowed red…and to this day…I still remember the screams".

Aisha looked at him in disbelief. Elsword paused, looking at her as if asking to go on. She then nodded.

He continued "After that, we were taken to Elder Castle, the wagon disguised as a simple supply wagon. Once we were inside, they took us in chains down to the basement, throwing us into cages probably half the size of this room."

"Wait, are you talking about…the Elder Incident?" Aisha said.

"Yeah" he replied, giving her his answer.

"We were from all over the continent. We were all scared and afraid. We were all Wally's test subjects. Genetic manipulation, cybernetic enhancements, demonification; he used us for all of those." He said, his eyes showing a bit of anger, as if he were imagining Wally right in front of him.

Then his expression lightened. "Fortunately, the first year wasn't as hard, because I still had my sister. We comforted each other, talking when the guards weren't around. I even remember how many times she told me everything would be okay, that someone would come save us." He said.

But then, his expression changed to one of torment "But then, one day, those scientists came to our cell and took her. She told me she would be back before long" he paused, the silence filling the air with uneasy tension. "Five hours afterwards, I saw some of those men carrying something covered up by cloth on a stretcher. One of them tripped and caused it to fall to the floor" as he continued, a small tear formed in his eye.

He struggled, the words coming out of his mouth stabbed him like daggers "What I saw…what we all saw…was…my sister's body, covered in cuts and blood"

Aisha let out a short gasp of shock, covering her mouth.

Elsword didn't mind this as he continued "After that, it was hell. Every time someone was taken out of the cell, we didn't know if they would ever return. Once, I even remember a girl who when she came back, she had lost all her emotion. I don't even want to imagine what they did to her. And when some of us tried to kill ourselves, the guards stopped them and took them to get treated, only to end up back in the cage again."

"After that, most of us lost all hope. Most of were sitting in that cell, left to our mutual despair. They had even experimented on me…they put some genetic material in my system, and it seemed that they were pleased. They talked about how I was the first subject out of 15 to succeed. I knew then…it was probably the same experiment they did on my sister" he continued.

He then began to tear up again "She died…they died…just to create a supersoldier…why did it have to be me?..."

Aisha reached to wipe his tears, but he did it himself with his uninjured arm before she got the chance.

He continued "By then, it had been a year and a half since she died…I had given up on hope by then…but then…he appeared."

* * *

_Wally's Underground Research Facility, City of Elder, 3 and a half years ago_

The red haired boy sat in a corner, his body propped against the wall. His eyes were empty, dull, and void of emotion. He had lost all hope of leaving the hell he found himself in, like many of the others in the cell with him.

Then suddenly, he heard a barrage of noise coming from the hall. A noise he had never heard in the two and a half years he had been in here.

It was the sound of gunshots. Magic gunshots.

The prisoners began to walk toward the edge of the cell, curious as to what the noise had came from.

The gunshots then stopped, leaving the room in utter silence.

Suddenly, a black claw that emanated a strange black aura, the size of that of a human hand, pierced the side of the door. Some of the children jumped back in shock, others got closer to the bars. The boy looked at the door, color beginning to return to his eyes.

The claw suddenly stopped emanating the black aura, now appearing to be a hand in a black gauntlet. As it pushed the door to the side, where it would normally slide, the children saw the hand belonged to a man they had never seen before. He was cloaked in a black coat, open to reveal the gray T-shirt he wore beneath. He had blond, shaggy hair. But his face was covered up by a black mask to cover his mouth, and a pair of shining orange ski goggles rimmed in black.

To many, the man would have seemed intimidating. But as he walked over to the children, he then spoke. He spoke the set of words those children had been waiting for months to hear.

"It's okay. I'm going to help you all get home."

* * *

Elsword's eyes no longer held the despair from earlier "After that, he asked each and every one of us where we were from, and get this, he got us a bus and took each and every one of us home, no matter how far away it was." He smiled, remembering the looks on everyone's faces.

"But however, then there was me…I was the sole survivor of the children from Ruben. He said he could leave me with a friend of his. But I asked him something else instead." He said, the smile on his face growing brighter.

_The red haired boy looked at his savior, who had given him an option, but instead of taking it, he said "I don't want to." _

_The man looked down at the boys face and said "Why not?" The boy then looked directly at him, his eyes filled with determination "Could you teach me how to fight?"_

_The man looked down at the boy's face, and asked him "Why do you want to fight? Do you have a reason?" The boy's determination didn't falter as he answered the man's question "I lost everything in that hell, my sister, my home, my friends, everything….I want to protect others so no one else has to go through what I did…never again!"_

_The man looked at the boy for a few seconds, and then suddenly laughed. "What's so funny?" the boy asked, annoyed at the man's response. "Nothing! It's just…I never thought I'd meet someone who had the same reason as me" he said. _

_The boy's eyes began to light up at this. The man spoke what the boy wanted to hear "Alright, I'll teach you as much as I can then. But I'm warning you, I'm not exactly a gentle teacher."_

"_I'll do my best! Sensei!"_

Aisha looked at the expression of Elsword's face, realizing part of the reason Elsword became a vigilante was because of his reason to fight and the role model his teacher represented.

Elsword continued, his eyes bright at the fond memory "He taught me just about everything I know: swordsmanship, strategy, about the world, everything. He even taught me all that school stuff too!"

_So that's why he's so smart and doesn't push himself in school_ Aisha thought, unraveling one mystery of her classmate.

He then grinned "He wasn't kidding though when he said he wasn't gentle. I lost count about three months in how many times I nearly died from his methods."

"You're kidding right?" she asked, curious about what sort of things Elsword's master did.

He quickly answered her "Nope. He even once threw me in the middle of a jungle during the summer, gave me a knife, and told me to survive for a whole week"

"…that sounds….insane" she said, comparing just how much more terrifying this man sounded to her own master.

"Well, he trained me for about a year, and after that, he had one of his friend's pull some strings so I could go to school. He told me that being able to live a normal life would be better for me, even if it meant doing things on the side. After that, he left and I ended up in that middle school mid-semester, where I met you" he said, concluding his story.

"Wow…that's…a lot to take in" she said, trying to sort everything Elsword revealed to her.

He grinned, grabbing the blanket from on top of the couch and replied "Well, that's expected, though I'm happy you were willing to listen to the whole thing Aisha", which made her blush a little once again.

"Ah, that felt good to finally get off my chest. Sometimes, you just need someone to talk to, know what I mean?" he said, his crimson eyes looking right at her purple eyes.

"Y-yeah…anyhow, it's late, so I'm just going to go to bed" she said as she stood up, coming up with an excuse to not look anymore at his eyes.

"Yeah, it is a little late, and I barely got any sleep last night. So see you in the morning!" he said as he laid his head onto the pillow.

"R-right" she said as she walked away. She turned around to see he had already fallen asleep.

_So f-fast!_ she thought as she looked at the boy. Unlike before, he actually looked peaceful. She walked as quietly as she could over to him, trying to get a closer look at the boy. He didn't look like someone who had went through so much. He looked like just a normal person. She then realized her hand was about to brush the hair off his face and quickly stopped herself.

_What is wrong with me!? _She thought as she quickly made her way to the stairs, hoping sleep would take her quickly.

* * *

**Elsword: Dang that was a long chapter**

**Aisha: Yeah, and to think Els had such a dark past…**

**WVH: Well everyone needs motivation; I just gave him one that came from the pain he faced. Also, I see you're calling him by a nickname now ;)**

**Aisha: *face suddenly grows red* D-don't take it like that!**

**WVH: Anyhow, next chapter will deal with the aftermath of Elsword's actions, as well as the prelude into what happens next**

**Aisha: Please tell me it's not going to involve me kidnapped again…**

**WVH: Nope, not this one!**

**Aisha: Phew**

**WVH: Can't promise after that though**

**Aisha: Wait what!? O_o**

**Elsword: anyhow, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone!**

**Everyone else who still hasn't gotten text time: WOLFEN! GIVE US SOME TI-**


	5. Chapter 5: Respite & Foreboding

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

* * *

_Aisha's House, City of Velder, 2:30am_

Aisha opened her eyes, looking toward the wall next to her bed.

_How could I be so insensitive to him? _she thought, her mind still trying to sort out everything Elsword revealed to her. It had kept her awake for the past half hour.

He had just about lost everything: his home, his friends, his family; she had never even thought about what sort of past he had before. And until today, she had always yelled and tried to teach him some manners, not thinking about what problems led to him becoming who he was.

_Maybe…Maybe I could try being a little nicer to him_ she thought, a small smile appearing on her face as she finally began to fall asleep.

* * *

_Location Unknown, 3:00am_

_Elsword was in a cage, putting his right hand through the bars, trying to reach out to a girl with red hair styled with a ponytail._

"_Don't worry Els, I'll be back soon"_

"_NO, DON'T GO!" he yelled, struggling to try and pull the bars open._

"_YOU'LL D-"he yelled again, but he then cut off, as the scene changed._

_Once more, he was looking at the body of his deceased sister. Her eyes no longer held color, and she was covered in cuts and blood. He then screamed "ELESIS!"_

Suddenly, the scene changed once more, but to the boy suddenly sitting upward, yelling his sister's name. He then calmed himself as he took in his surroundings. He was on the sofa in the living room of Aisha's house, not back in that cage in Elder.

_Just a nightmare….just a nightmare _he thought, trying to calm himself down. He hated nightmares, because most of the times he had one, it would be based off his memories, reliving the hell he lived all over again.

After he had finally calmed down, he decided to take a quick look at his wounds. They had mostly healed up already. Fortunately, by the time he had his nightmare, it seems they had closed up enough so the sudden awakening wouldn't open them.

"Phew, that could have been bad" he said, saying his thoughts out loud.

He then started to shiver a little and put his arms around himself.

"Brrrr it's cold in here"

* * *

_Aisha's Room, City of Velder, 9:00am_

It was morning, the room had begun to be filled with sunlight.

"…stop that Mr. Magician" Aisha muttered in her sleep as she rolled a little on her bed. "You're making me blush"

Suddenly, the sunlight hit her eyelids just enough to make her open them. She opened and closed them for a second, and then rolled over into the direction opposite of the light.

The second she did so, she was greeted by a pair of red eyes and a familiar face surrounded by red hair.

She looked for a second, then quickly closed her eyes.

_I must be dreaming…that idiot isn't in my bed…when I open my eyes again, he won't b-_

She was cut off when she heard "Morning sleepy-head" coming from Elsword's voice.

She opened her eyes again to see him still in her bed. Her face went from slight shock to red and flustered very quickly. She then quickly jumped away from Elsword and toward the other edge of the bed.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM!? WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING IN MY BED!?" she yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Well it was cold downstairs, and I thought you would have some body heat to share" he said with a grin, trying to play off the innocent look.

She looked down slightly, her hair covering her eyes, and clenching his fist in front of her, as words began to come out of her mouth. "Y-You…YOU BAKA!" she yelled as she punched him in the face as hard as she could, knocking him off the bed and onto the floor.

* * *

_A few minutes later downstairs_

"Hey Aisha, where's the fridge?"

Aisha looked away from him with a pouty look on her face, giving him the silent treatment.

_Okay…maybe sleeping next to a girl for body warmth was a bad idea_ he thought, his left hand cradling the red mark on his cheek he got from earlier.

He then got up and walked toward the door he presumed was the kitchen. He saw he was right on the money, finding himself in a room that contained a fridge, pantry, oven, microwave, and sink.

Before long, he walked out of the kitchen with a bagel in his mouth and his right hand holding a glass of milk. He then sat down on the sofa and set his drink on the coffee table as he looked the girl sitting across from him, who was drinking a cup of coffee, eyes closed and her eyebrows furrowed. She was still a little angry.

He then broke the silence saying "I said I'm sorry."

At first, it looked like she was going to continue giving him the silent treatment, but after she put down her cup, she replied "Don't think I'll forgive you that easy…dummy", her face still slightly pouty, but not as much as before. She then opened her eyes to look at the boy.

"So….how did you change your hair color? Some washable dye or something?" she asked.

"Nope, just some magic" he replied, waving his hand by head and changing his hair to white once more.

"How is that possible?" she said slightly surprised. She had gotten to the point of just expecting just about anything from the redhead.

"It's simply messing with how your hair reflects and absorbs light" he said, answering her question while waving his hand near his head once more, his hair color turning once again into a brilliant crimson.

"Okay…" she replied. She then turned her attention to his arm and leg, which had somehow fully recovered overnight. "So…what happened to your injuries?"

"Oh that. I can heal faster than most people." he spoke as if though his words had no consequence.

"You know what, I'm not even going to ask and presume its magic, right?" she replied back.

Elsword then quickly answered "No actually, from what Sensei guessed, it was a result of-"but was cut off from the sound of the doorbell.

"I'll get it!" she said, as if though it was a chance to get herself out of the conversation. As she walked toward the stairway hall and towards the door, she looked back and said "Don't make a scene dummy"

"No promises" he spoke with a grin.

She sighed as she walked toward the door and began to open it. She had expected to find a door-to-door salesman on the other side, but instead found Rena, with her face as cheerful as ever.

"R-Rena! What are you doing here?" Aisha said, surprised at her friend's arrival.

"You won't believe it Aish'! Raven said he wanted to go on another date with me!" she replied, bouncing slightly up and down out of joy.

Aisha looked at her friend, glad for her, but also slightly confused. She asked "Okay….and what does that have to do with being at my house before noon?"

Rena replied right on the spot "Cuz I'm going to need a cute outfit! He said we'd be going out to dinner! So I need you to help me pick out one!" she said, holding up two bags overflowing with clothes she had just brought from the mall.

Suddenly, Aisha realized where this was going. Rena wanted to come in to have Aisha judge her clothes, but Elsword was still in the living room. "Well, how about we go do it at your house, cuz my room is a little messy right now" Aisha said, trying to keep her from coming in.

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad" Rena replied, pushing Aisha to the side as she walked through the door.

"NO WAIT!" Aisha yelled trying to quickly stop Rena from going any farther. But she kept walking.

"What, you got something to hide Aish'?" she said looking back at her right as she turned the corner.

The second she looked ahead, her eyes caught Elsword's, who happened to have a bagel in his mouth.

Aisha caught up to her too late, seeing the eye contact, and began to mope in defeat.

_My life is over_ she thought as the house was filled with a delightful squeal made by the elf.

* * *

_Location Unknown, City of Velder, 12:30 pm_

The room was dark: blinds closed, lights off; the only bit light came from the computer.

On the screen was the picture of a boy with white hair and wearing a black coat. However, his face was covered by a black mask.

A clearly disguised voice then came from the screen.

"This is your target. Eliminate him."

A figure in front of the computer, seated in a chair, considered the man's proposition.

"Are you gonna tell me a reason why you want him dead?" the figure spoke, his voice that of a young male.

"Confidential" the voice on the other side of the line answered.

The figure released a short sigh at this answer. He hated it when his clients kept confidential information about the target from him. But sometimes, he figured the reward was worth the annoyance.

"Your payment?" he spoke, his voice monotone, holding no sign of the annoyance he felt after the client's last reply.

"10 million ED on accepting the offer, and 40 million afterwards" the voice replied.

The figure smiled. 50 million ED sounded like it was worth the confidentiality.

"Very well then. Consider your man dead. I'll send you a bank address for your preliminary payment then" he said, closing the chat shortly afterwards and sending a message with the address to his client.

He then stood up, walking towards the window. As he opened the shades, the light filled the room.

The boy had short, spikey, blond hair with two brown bangs. His eyes as blue as a sapphire.

He was known in the underworld as the assassin _The Deadly Chaser_, and as long as he had interest in hunting down a target, he would chase them to the ends of the Earth if need be.

_Well, this ought to be fun_ he thought as he looked outside the window, his grin growing into a full smile.

* * *

_Two days later, Velder Academy, City of Velder, 7:00am_

Aisha let out a short breath of relief as she found that her life was not yet over.

After Rena found Elsword in Aisha's house Saturday morning, Elsword had convinced Rena that he had gotten kicked out of his apartment for not paying his rent on time and after Aisha found him walking the streets, Aisha, being a 'Good Samaritan', let him stay the night on the sofa. He then somehow managed to divert the topic to helping Rena decide on her outfit, saying that it would be better to also have a guy's opinion.

After hours of judging Rena's looks in every outfit, she left without even asking any more about why Elsword was in Aisha's house.

"_How did you do that?" she asked, surprised out how he had completely turned the situation into their favor._

"_Well, Sensei had literally drilled into me how to read and persuade people into doing whatever I asked of them, though I'm nowhere near his level" he said with a short laugh._

She had been slightly creeped out by that. But considering she had never seen him do it until today, she decided to let him off the hook for it. If Rena had even the smallest bit more of time, she would have guessed them to be secret lovers or something like that. And if anything Aisha had learned about her friend over the years, it was that Rena was horrible at keeping secrets.

Speaking of Elsword, he was sitting down at his desk drinking from a bottle of coffee. He had made a few rounds last night to see if there was any activity in response to the fight on Friday night, so he had once again missed a few hours of sleep. Fortunately, the coffee helped, making him awake enough that he felt he could get the day done easy.

The door to the classroom opened as Ms. Stella walked into the classroom. "Alright, sit down and shut up." she said as she seemed to do her usual routine.

Though however, today wasn't usual.

Ms. Stella then looked at the class and said "Alright, today we have a new student. I don't care if you come to hate or like her, just don't start yammering with her in the middle of class."

_A new student mid-semester? That's rare _Elsword thought as he raised his coffee to his mouth once more, his eyes closed.

"Come in" Ms. Stella spoke towards the doorway.

A girl walked into the room, getting the attention of some of the boys. Her hair was silver and long, and her eyes yellow. And for some reason, a blue crown glowed over her head.

"I'd like to introduce our new transfer student, Eve Einsfeld"

The second he heard the name, Elsword suddenly spit the coffee out of his mouth and looked toward the front of the classroom. Everyone suddenly looked at him, including Eve. She looked him for a second, and as her eyes suddenly widened slightly, she spoke.

"Ah Elsword, long time no see"

"Y-yo…Eve…" he replied, still trying to catch his breath.

She then walked up to him and quickly slapped him.

"That is no way to say hello to an old friend, Elsword"

_Ah crap, of all people… _he thought, looking up at the friend he thought he would never see again

* * *

**Elsword: Well, other than being hit in the face twice, that was a good chapter**

**Aisha: Yeah, I guess the author needed to add in some comedic relief**

**WVH: That was the plan**

**Aisha: Though that part in the middle was a little foreboding…so an assassin is after Elsword now?**

**WVH: Yep**

**Elsword: Well, that's just great…at least if I die, I can say I slept with Aisha XD**

**Rena: OMIGOD REALLY!? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE**

**Aisha: …my life is over…**

**Eve: Elsword, you should not toy with a woman's feelings like that! *slaps Elsword***

**WVH: Okay Eve, calm down**

**Sensei: Well, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone!**

**WVH: HEY! YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE YET!**

**Sensei: …does it look like I care?**

**WVH: Get out of here before Elsword wakes up and causes even more of a scene!**

**Sensei: Fine….when do I show up anyway?**

**WVH: At the end…**

**Sensei: …dammit…**


	6. Chapter 6: Contact: The Deadly Chaser

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**And yes, this chapter has 40% more action than the last chapter XD**

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 12:20pm_

"Sigh…I still can't believe she transferred here of all places" Elsword spoke as he was about to take a bite of his lunch, his arm covering yet another red mark, but this time from the silverette instead of the purplette.

He and Chung tended to go to the rooftop for lunch every day of school, or as Elsword called it, 'sit around and listen to crap you should know by now day'. He and Chung had become good friends ever since Chung transferred into Velder Junior High two years ago.

Though at first…it was a little awkward. Elsword like many others in the school had first mistaken Chung for a girl…and after he tried hitting on him, he learned the truth, and stopped hitting on random girls for a month out of fear they may have actually been dudes.

"So, she like an ex-girlfriend or something?" Chung asked, a slight grin on his face.

"Something like that" Elsword said, his eyes directed away from his friend.

"So what, you break up or something just because she kept slapping you?"

Elsword began to shiver as he replied "Yes…those slaps were terrifying…she just kept slapping me every time I tried to do something…uuuuuggh" as the look on his face spoke of torment from long ago.

However, it was a lie.

He had never really dated Eve. The part about the slaps were true though, every time Eve thought Elsword was doing something morally wrong, according to her book, she would slap him. And her slaps felt like a bus ramming you right on the side of the head. He even tried hitting on her once, only to end up in a wall, barely conscious, and getting a lecture on proper manners from Eve.

Despite that though, he couldn't let anyone know the truth. He couldn't let them know how he actually knew her.

The girl he knew from 4 years ago.

* * *

_Meanwhile in the Cafeteria_

"Thank you for letting me sit here, Miss Aisha and Miss Rena" Eve said as she sat down at a circular table near the window edge of the room with Aisha and Rena.

"No problem Eve! Happy to have you here!" The cheery elf replied as Aisha nodded in agreement.

"Still though, did not expect you to walk right up to the Eldork and slap him!" Aisha said as she laughed, though half-heartedly.

Eve replied to this with "It was necessary, 'yo' is not the proper way to greet a friend you have not seen in a long time."

"Is that so?" Aisha said looking at the silverette while thinking _Note to self: Don't use slang near Eve_.

Rena then asked "So, how do you know Elsword?"

Eve looked down for a moment, considering this and said "He's a childhood friend of mine, that it all", though there was no sign of emotion.

Rena quickly caught on this and said "You sure there was nothing else?"

"Yes. Just a friend." Eve replied, once again with no emotion.

"Well, let's just leave it at that Rena" Aisha said, wanting to leave the topic.

Before long, they continued chatting while eating, but not returning to the topic.

The entire time though, one thought kept circulating in Aisha's mind.

_Do they know each other from that incident?_

_Maybe I should ask Elsword._

Before long, she had completely tuned out of the conversation and started to think of ways she could speak with Rune without supercharging the rumor mill.

* * *

_Business Sector, City of Velder, 12:10am_

Elsword had let out a short breath of relief while standing on the edge of a building.

Other than the occasional mugger or thief, there hadn't been much activity that night.

But he couldn't shake off the feeling they would be back before long. Ever since the night he fought the kidnappers, he had a sense of foreboding, that something was going to go down. He knew that if the van group had a mole in the police, they were probably part of an organization.

And if it was an organization behind the kidnappings, they would probably want payback.

He then jumped down to a nearby building and started to walk toward his next destination. But just as he began walking, he saw a small shimmer from the corner of his eye.

The storm had come, in the form of a cannonball, mere inches from the vigilante's face.

The ball crashed into the building to the left of Elsword, exploding the second it hit on impact.

Meanwhile, Elsword had quickly ducked into some cover made by the vents on the roof. He had barely gotten out of that alive, seeing a small bit of light on the cannon barrel. If he hadn't seen it, he assumed he would be in a million pieces of flesh all over the city.

_This is bad, that thing is as silent as a sniper rifle, and can blow a hole in a building_ he thought, trying to figure a way out of the situation.

Suddenly another explosion occurred about 1 meter to his right. It was enough to blow a hole in the roof.

_Crap, either his aim isn't as good as I thought, or it's a trap _he continued to think, looking at the hole that could either provide essential cover, or lead him to his death.

He decided within less than 10 seconds.

"Well if I stay up here, I'm a sitting duck anyway" he muttered as he quickly made a jump into the hole.

At the bottom, he saw he was in a classic office building. The little boxed areas, each with their own desk and computer. "Man, whoever their boss is, he is gonna be pissed" the Magician muttered as he walked down the aisle, avoiding the moonlight as to not give the cannon sniper any targets. Every now and then, Elsword could feel the building shutter as his enemy tried to find his location.

As he continued, he found where the stairs were. But they were in a horrible spot.

Between him and his objective was 10 feet of absolutely no cover. If he was seen by his opponent, it would all be over if his opponent was a good sniper.

_And if I make a hole in the floor, I have no idea if he'll use the sound, dust, or the environment to his advantage._

The boy then looked once more at his goal.

He then sprinted right through the moonlit room.

Soon enough, he was once more greeted by darkness, his objective reached. However, just before he reached the door, he noticed that one thing was off.

It was too quiet. He could no longer hear the sound of cannonballs.

The second he realized this, he quickly jumped back as his assailant broke down the staircase door, shooting no longer with a cannon, but a pair of pistols instead.

As Elsword jumped into cover, he took a quick glimpse of the figure.

He was clad in white armor, his face completely covered by a hood. And all that could be seen of his eyes were two yellow slits.

_This isn't going to be easy, but it's not like he has the full advantage_ the Magician thought as he jumped out of his cover and began to rush him.

Much to his assailant's surprise, Elsword quickly dodged and parried each of the Assassin's shots. What the assassin did not know was that back when Elsword trained with his Sensei, he had thought him how to deal with all sorts of weapons. And unlike the assassin, Sensei was much more skilled when given a pair of pistols.

_I can do this! His speed is nothing like Sensei's_ he thought as he closed in. He then threw down a Triple Geyser towards his opponent, who barely managed to dodge it.

But the Rune Slayer expected this. As the white clad gunman dodged the attack, Elsword shot a fire rune towards his opponent.

As this happened, the gunman aimed his gun toward his masked opponent.

And then he pulled the trigger, right as the fire rune hit and burned his shoulder.

He may have missed the headshot, but Elsword suddenly staggered back, his shoulder spewing blood for a second.

_Okay, maybe I underestimated him_ Elsword thought as he put his open hand onto the wound.

Both of them had managed to injure the other. While one was ready to keep going though, the other had other plans.

"Seems you're better than I thought, Magician. Until next time. And next time, I will kill you. Not just for the paycheck, but the thrill as well" the assassin said, his voice was clearly disguised by some sort of microphone. He then pulled out a grenade and quickly threw it on the floor. The grenade suddenly exploded in the form of light.

_Crap! Flashbang!_ Elsword thought, putting up his arms too late as the flash blinded his sight.

Next thing he knew, he saw that the assassin was gone. The only traces left of him were the empty flashbang on the floor and the holes in the building left by his gun and cannon.

Elsword let out a sigh, while thinking _First I have to deal with a girl knowing my identity, then my old friend from Elder comes back, and now I have to deal with an assassin? Man this week sucks_.

He then heard the police sirens coming from the streets below, giving him his cue to leave.

* * *

_Meanwhile, a mile or so away_

The assassin jumped from building to building, making his way toward his base of operations.

"Sheesh, no wonder they want him dead" he said out loud, his arm cradling his shoulder. From what he could tell, his shoulder probably suffered some 2nd degree burns from that flame rune.

As he touched down on his home's roof and sneaked inside, he considered possible plans of attack.

_I doubt I could do well in a direct confrontation with him. I already tired a sneak attack, and it won't work again, as that one led me into a direct confrontation. Hmm _he thought as he put his finger to his chin.

After he took off his helmet, he snapped his fingers, his face lighting up in a 'eureka' moment.

_I'll just have to find out what sort of weaknesses he has_ he thought as a grin appeared on his face.

It had been a while since he had to investigate a target. And he only investigated when they were hard to beat. When they really caught his interest.

"Well, Mr. Magician, let the game of cat and mouse begin" he spoke, his tone clearly stating he was trying to hold his excitement.

* * *

_The next day, City Streets, City of Velder, 6:45am_

_Sheesh, can't believe it still stings. Stupid magic bullets _the red head thought while trying to not look like his shoulder was in any way injured. He was a little surprised that the injury was still there despite his healing abilities, but he shrugged it off.

The one time his Sensei shot him with similar bullets, they stung for a week. Though back then, his powers weren't as strong as they were now.

_I swear, if I see that guy again, I'l-_he thought, only to be cut off a hand suddenly clasped his injured shoulder.

The hand came from Aisha, who began to speak "Elswor-", but was quickly cut off as Elsword yelped "dah!" in pain, causing her to jump back slightly.

"E-Elsword? You ok?" she said, surprised by the sudden reaction.

"Oh, hey Aisha, I'm fine. Just a bullet wound" he said looking back at her, his face with a smile trying to hide the stinging pain.

"BULLET WO-"she began to say in surprise, only to be cut off by Elsword's hand covering her mouth.

"Not so loud!" the red head spoke to her in a whispered tone.

After letting go of her, she then whispered "So what happened?"

"Let's just say, I think someone wants me dead" he replied, a small grin appearing on his face.

"WAIT, SOMEONE I-"she began to yell, only to be cut off again by Elsword's hand.

"Shhhhhhhhh" he retorted. After a moment, he took his hand off her face again. She had calmed down for the moment.

"Fine, I won't ask, just keep yourself safe, Eldork" she said as she looked in the other direction with a pouty face.

"So, did you have something to ask of me, or did you just miss my company so much that you went out of your way to find me before school?" he asked as a grin appeared on his face.

She quickly came back on that; "Does it look like I need your company? Mr. GetsSlappedALot?" she said as she started to grin.

He looked away with his own pouty face while saying "Now that was just cold."

After a moment, Aisha looked toward the red head again and asked "So…is Eve from back then?"

Elsword's face suddenly grew more serious for a second.

"Yeah…" he said, his eyes looking downward. As his eyes left the ground, he said "I don't know what they did, but after what they did, she lost all of her emotions" as he looked at Aisha.

She wasn't expecting to see Elsword with that cool, tortured look in his eyes again. It made him look older than his age. Then again, he had spent over 2 years as a madman's guinea pig.

"Though I am worried that her being back means I have to be slapped constantly again" he continued, his face turning once more back into the jokester she had come to know since they met.

She looked and laughed "Yeah, you should have seen the look on your face when she slapped you yesterday", and despite the fact it was a slight insult, the boy next to her laughed too.

"Yeah, maybe next time, I'll set up a camera and actually mean to flip her switch" he said as he continued to laugh.

Suddenly, a voice came from behind them as another hand tapped Elsword's injured shoulder.

"Getting pretty chummy, aren't we?"

"Dah!" the red head reacted, thought quieter this time, as he turned to see his long-haired blonde friend.

"C-chung!" he yelped in surprise. He looked to see his friend had a sort of grin on his face. It took a moment for Elsword and Aisha to realize what Chung was thinking. "It's not what it looks like! I swear!" they said as they waved their hands in front of them.

"Sureeeeeeee…." Chung said, his smile grinning with mischief. "Ah well, I owe Rune one for helping me with homework anyhow, so I'll keep your little secret…for now" he continued as he walked between the two.

"Anyhow, you better run, considering what time it is" he said as he began to sprint into the distance.

Elsword and Aisha looked at each other for a moment, trying to figure out what he said. Then when the realization hit him, Elsword took out his phone and took a look at the time.

It was 6:55.

"Run for it!" he yelled, quickly grabbing Aisha and dragging her by her arms as he ran, not giving a thought of the possible consequences on their social images.

* * *

_Gymnasium, Velder Academy, City of Velder, 3:15pm_

"I can't believe just because we were three minutes late, she's making us clean the whole gym"

"Oh relax Els, she could have done worse" the blonde replied to his friend's complaint.

"Easy for you to say! Thanks to you two dorks, I lost my perfect attendance!" Aisha complained. It was one of the few time throughout her entire life she had been late to class. She began muttering just what this would do to her permanent record.

"Calm down Aisha, it's not the end of the world" Chung replied, trying to cheer her up.

She let out a short sigh, grabbing a mop, and said "I guess you're right…but I won't let you two live it down!"

"Whatever floats you boat, Miss Teacher's Pet" Elsword said, his joke meant to get himself out of his own mental rut.

After 10 minutes of mopping the floor, Elsword looked down at the mop bucket. The water that had been clear and soapy was now brown and dirty.

"Well, I'm going to go get us some new water" he said as he grabbed the bucket.

"Well, if we're going to take a short break, I'll be right back" Aisha said as she put the mop on the side of the wall.

"To do what?" Elsword replied.

"To use the restroom, dummy!" she retorted as she left the room.

Elsword shrugged for a second, and as he walked toward the door, he looked at Chung and said "Women, am I right?" with a grin on his face.

"Yeah" the blonde replied, giving the red head his answer as Elsword left the room.

Chung was now alone. He looked around for a second, as if checking to see no one was around, and then cradled his shoulder.

"Dang...that mage did a number on me" he muttered.

* * *

**Elsword: So wait, Chung is 'The Deadly Chaser'?**

**WVH: Yep**

**Elsword: How does that make sense? Chung's (IP) hair is long, and DC's hair is short!**

**Aisha: Says the guy who can change his hair and eye color**

**Elsword: But….I….crap she has a point**

**WVH: Elsword-0 Aisha-2**

**Elsword: OH COME ON!**

**Chung: Oh relax Els, we all have a way to hide our identities.**

**Elsword: …sigh…can't win can I?**

**Eve: True, and you should be ashamed of yourself for dragging Aisha like that**

**Elsword: But that was because we had to get to class**

**Eve: *with a slight smile and giggle* and yet you were still late**

**Elsword: …CBS giggled?...IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD! *slapped by Eve***

**WVH: Anyhow…don't forget to R&amp;R everyone! Meanwhile…I need to stop Eve from killing Elsword *walks over to try and calm down Eve***

**PS. Next Chapter will be out sometime this weekend or next week. The reason: college papers -_-**


	7. Chapter 7: Identity Crisis

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

* * *

_Chung's House, City Of Velder, 8:55pm_

Chung let out a breath of annoyance as he looked at his computer.

So far, he hadn't found anything important about the Magician other than his use of runes, what he looked like in costume, and the city where he's based in; all of which he had already knew as he had went up against the Magician the night before.

The only lead he had now was the Magician's use of runes. And he knew that other than his school friend Elsword, there were at least 10 Rune Slayers in town that were on the records, and at least 4 or more off record. Despite giving him people to look through, most of them were either the other gender or too far off age wise to be the Magician.

He then looked toward the compartment that was normally hidden in his closet. It held his two guns and cannon on one shelf, and above it, was a hood and mask for his job, and a blonde wig, which he had made to connect to its host so if it was tugged, it wouldn't suddenly fall off.

He enjoyed his school life, considering it was a life he never really got to experience before. Ever since he became friends with Elsword, he had decided to no longer use the school as just a cover, but as a chance at a normal life.

It was at that moment he thought _Maybe I should check Elsword?_

He then quickly shook his head in disapproval while thinking _No, I've seen him fight before, even if he's a Rune Slayer, his power is nowhere near the Magician's. And besides, he's not the type to go rushing to every person's needs. But what i-_

His train of thought was suddenly derailed as an alarm clock he had set for 9:00pm went off. He had already decided that he would go out to find the Magician once more, but this time, he would follow him, and if Chung was lucky, he would find out where the vigilante based himself.

_Now, let's see just who you are, Magician_ he thought, a grin making its way across his face as he walked over to the compartment and grabbed the hood and mask.

* * *

_Rooftops, City of Velder, 11:00pm_

Tonight Elsword was on his toes. Despite the fact there wasn't many criminals on the streets this night, he was tense.

He was expecting the white armored assailant to appear again to attack him. But however, after everything his teacher taught him, he wasn't only ready for that scenario.

From what Elsword could tell during their last fight, he had figured his assailant to be a professional hitman or assassin. And even more important was the fact he used a mic to disguise his voice, meaning that, just like Elsword, he too wanted to keep his true identity a secret.

And more importantly, he already knew he was being tailed.

Years back, his master had taught Elsword how to use his instinct in a way to sense any form of hostile intent, even if his enemy happened to have years of experience in disguising or diminishing it until it was almost nothing. He had known someone had set his eyes on him for about an hour. And he even recognized this presence from the night before. It was the assassin again.

Elsword considered three possibilities.

_One, he's waiting for me to let down my guard, but he failed at that last time. Two, he's leading me into a trap, which is likely. Or-_

His eyes widened for just a second out of realization.

_Or he's trying to see where I'll go when I'm done_ he thought.

He then grinned under his mask.

_Well, let's see if he can keep up then_ he though as he landed on the next rooftop.

As he did so, he quickly drew a rune under his feet.

"Wind"

He then suddenly increased in speed, moving at least 2 to 3 times faster than before.

Behind him, his pursuer, Chung noticed this.

_Crap, he knows I'm here! I can't lose him!_ he thought as he sped up to try and keep up the pace.

After about 5 minutes of running across the city, when Chung began to consider to try and shoot his target, Elsword suddenly jumped down into an alley. From what Elsword could tell, he had about a 1 minute lead on his pursuer.

If anything, now was the time to lose him.

He quickly went to the wall and pushed a button that silently opened a small alcove with a ladder. As he quickly jumped onto the ladder, he pressed a button next to the ladder, which caused the alcove to be hidden once more by the brick wall.

Only moments after it closed, Chung jumped down from the rooftops and quickly looked around. He did not see his target. He then pulled out a small PDA-like device and pressed the screen. As he did so, the device suddenly showed the area in front of it, but as a thermal scan. As the assassin looked around, he noticed a recent set of footprints heading toward a wall, which happened to have a handprint on it as well.

_Well, he's prepared_ Chung thought, as he pulled out a grenade. He threw it at the wall, which was then destroyed by a silent explosion. Chung looked down, seeing a ladder silo that extended until it hit some sort of trapdoor.

_Hmm, he must have escaped into the sewers_ he thought. But as he looked down, he noticed a white strand of hair on the side of the silo.

_And there's my lead _he thought as he grinned under his mask once more.

* * *

_Meanwhile, 3 miles away…_

A similar alcove suddenly opened, revealing the Magician as he climbed out.

_Good thing I set those up a while back. It ought to keep him off my tail for now_ he thought as he closed the alcove behind him.

"M-Magician?" A voice suddenly stuttered.

Elsword suddenly jumped back and pulled out his sword as he looked toward the source of the voice. Only to be greeted by a surprised face with purple hair, who had happened to drop a few plastic bags in response of Elsword's reaction.

"Oh, hey Aisha" he said as he put his sword away.

She then quickly went to grab the bags she dropped and when she looked at him again, spoke "Is that how you greet people who know your little secret?" It was clear she was annoyed at the jump scare.

"Depends" Elsword said as he shrugged.

"Also…what did you do to that wall?" she asked the boy.

"Don't worry about it. So, what are you doing out so late?" he asked the purplette.

"Oh I just needed to grab some milk an-"she replied, but cut off herself as she said "Hey, don't lead me off Eldork. Just what is that?" as she approached the alcove and touched the wall. It then opened to reveal a small silo with a ladder on one side.

"Yeah…it's a sort of escape plan I made a while back" he said as he looked away, one hand scratching the back of his head.

"…where does it go?" she then asked while looking down.

"The sewers" he replied.

She then turned her head, seeing him right next to her, with his hand touching her arm.

And he had been in the sewers.

"HEY, DON'T TOUCH ME WITH THOSE WET AND DIGUSTING HANDS YOU BAKA!" she yelled as she punched him in the chin. He flew for a second, but managed to stick the landing.

"Okay okay! I give!" he said with one hand with one hand holding his chin, the other waving in front of him.

"Whatever, just go already!" she said, looking away from him with a pouty face.

"Okay, later!" he said as he quickly climbed up the building opposite of the silo.

She sighed as she pressed the hidden switch to close the alcove. As she walked back onto the street she put her hand on the shoulder he touched.

_Even though his hand had all that gunk on it…it was kinda of…warm _she thought.

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 12:57pm_

"So, have you guys heard?"

"Heard what?"

"This guy in white tried to go after the Magician!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, my friend said that one of his friends managed to get a little bit of it on video!"

Chung looked at his gossiping classmates at the desks behind him, and while trying not to make any funny faces, looked back toward the front of the room.

_Of all things…there just had to be someone there…_ he thought. In a majority of his jobs, he tried to avoid being seen by anyone other than his target at all costs. The reason why, he wanted to avoid the publicity; it could make it harder to move around as well as make him more predictable to his target.

_Hopefully they didn't get any close up shots _he thought.

Suddenly, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Then their class teacher walked in, and jumped up onto a stool so he could see over his desk.

Their Science teacher, Mr. Grail, was in fact, a dog. A walking, talking, lab coat-wearing dog. Supposedly, he used to work for the Lurensia University, but after an accident during one of his experiments, he and half of the researchers were turned into animals and he was fired. Afterwards, he applied here as a science teacher and was accepted due his record of accomplishments from before the accident.

"Alright, today is a lab day, but since this is the first lab of the second half, I'm assigning new lab partners." he spoke to his class.

There were moans, cheers, and 'meh's from all over the classroom. People were either glad, sad, or didn't care that they had to get a new partner.

As he went down the list, people moved around the classroom to work with their new partners.

"Chung Seiker and Eve Einsfeld" he called out some way down the list.

"Well Els, see ya later" Chung spoke to his companion as he got up.

"No worries dood!" Elsword replied. He then quickly went up to Chung's ear and whispered "Good luck man, hope ya score" as a grin grew across his face.

Chung's face turned light red for a second. "Whatever" he replied. He then looked at his partner, Eve. Despite trying to ignore what Elsword said as he sat down next to her, he couldn't help thinking she was cute.

Long silver hair, bright amber eyes, and a personality he could get along with. He couldn't help but look away for a second trying to get rid of his blush.

And then that chance came as the next names were called.

"Aisha Vindir and Elsword Sieghart."

"WHAT!?" the two whose names were just spoken yelled.

"Don't complain, these selections are final. Am I clear?" the professor retorted. The two then sighed as Aisha walked over to Rune's desk.

Meanwhile, Chung was holding himself from laughing. The two had always had a sort of love-hate relationship, and now they were forced to be lab partners. Despite the fact he felt sorry for his friend, he also could just imagine the comedic chaos that would probably occur.

But that daydream disappeared with one word.

"Chung."

He quickly looked to see Eve looking at him, waiting for him to get prepared.

"Ah, r-right" he said as he put on his lab goggles.

He could already hear Rune inside his head mocking him with _And there's the stutter, strike one!_

He then looked at the lab sheet, seeing they needed to make a solution from a piece of metal and a liquid chemical.

_Easy _he thought as his hand reached out for one of the solid materials on the desk.

However, instead of his hand grabbing the solid, it happened to grab onto Eve's hand, which happened to be heading toward the same destination. The two looked at each other for a moment, but Chung was the first to pull away his hand and turn away, his face red. And as he turned, he could see Elsword down below giving him a thumbs up. He looked to see Eve was blushing slightly as well.

He smiled as he got comfortable again, until suddenly a small explosion came from the front of the classroom. Aisha's and Elsword's faces were now covered in black. The second Elsword began to laugh, Aisha proceeded to punching him in the face and calling him a "baka!" As the scene folded out in front of them, Eve and Chung began to giggle a little.

* * *

_Chung's house, City Of Velder, 4:00pm_

Chung put his bag down next to his desk and sat on his bed.

He had been in a good mood for a good amount of the day since lab class.

He thought of his friend Elsword and the girl who had become Chung's lab partner, Eve, and for a moment, he felt complete for the first time since his father's death.

Suddenly, a beeping noise came from his computer, snapping him out of his moment of peace. He quickly took off his wig and put it in the compartment and then sat down at his computer.

He had put the one strand of white hair he had found last night into his DNA scanner before he left for school. He was one of the few people in existence to have one of these machines, being that they were highly expensive to make. Only medical offices, the police, and a few government facilities had them.

What made him confidant he could find the Magician's identity however, was Chung had hacked hundreds of databases that held genetic information. So even if the DNA had no current match, if the data happened to have been modified or deleted, Chung could use the years of copied data that had been put into his own computer to find his target.

The only unfortunate part of it was that if his target had completely changed his appearance since the deletion, it made it much harder to find his target.

He then clicked on his mouse to compare the DNA of the hair to his database.

What came up was dated 7 years ago.

His eyes widened as he saw the image on the side.

It showed a picture of a young boy with red spikey hair.

But it was the name next to it that made his jaw drop in shock.

It read 'Elsword Rune Sieghart'.

* * *

**Elsword: Well…I screwed up**

**Aisha: Yes, yes you did…why did you put the sulfur in the test tube!?**

**Elsword: That's not what I'm talking about!...also sorry about that!**

**Aisha: You are such a baka…**

**Chung: Well, I'm guessing there will be a showdown next time, right wolf?**

**WVH: Yep! So everyone better be prepared for a chapter with a CRAP-TON of action!**

**Rena: And I have a feeling there might be a little romance going on too!**

**Elsword, Aisha, Chung, and Eve: *look away and blush slightly***

**WVH: Well anyhow, since I haven't responded to reviews for a while, here's the responses!**

* * *

**xElsa-Chap3: Well, I can't make him too OP yet XD; Chap5: Don't worry, there will be lots of action and whatnot, and maybe I'll start a love triangle later ;)**

**Arrow-chan3-Chap3: That'll be explained way later, and I think I already answered your question on his reaction XD; Chap4: Nothing like a dark backstory to give people a reason to fight. Also, want a band aid for that burn mark?; Chap6: Hope you enjoy it then! Also, yes, I made sure to add some ChEve just for you :D**

**DigiDawg2-Chap3: Well…you were one of my inspirations, cuz you made me think "Instead of being a sort of covert investigator, what if Elsword was a vigilante all the time" and before long, I had a story XD**

**Guest-Chap1: Well, I hope you enjoy the rest of the series then my friend!**

**DeviSwitchReverse-Chap4: Well, I hope you enjoy the story man, and I update fast when I'm on a roll with the plot…and don't have college work XD**

**Western-Otaku-Chap5: Nothing like a new foe and a character that constantly abuses the main character to spice things up in a story!**

**SpiritEl-Chap6: Thank you! Also, I got on a little bit of a roll with the plot, so I decided to just type the story…instead of working on my paper…thus the reason for the hiatus the past few days XD**

**Meh-Chap4: …I'll consider that…can't say if I'll do it or not cuz otherwise that would be spoilers XD**

* * *

**Elsword: Sheesh those reviews piled up**

**Eve: 'Sheesh' is not proper vocabulary Elsword *slaps Elsword***

**WVH: …she must've been waiting for a reason to slap him….poor bastard…**

**Eve: You should not be swearing in this section, Wolfen *starts walking toward Wolfen***

**WVH: Well, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone! *runs from Eve so she can't slap him***


	8. Chapter 8: Deadly Assault

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Also, I'm finally back! After countless hours of studying, satisfying my game addiction, being forced to volunteer for multiple events, and hours of writer's block, I have finally finished this chapter for you guys! Hopefully, it won't take me as long to do the next one! Anyhow, enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

_Cafeteria, Velder Academy, City Of Velder, 12:15 pm_

Aisha let out a short sigh.

_Why him of all people? _she thought as she looked at the boy sitting next to her. Only a few moments after they sat down, Elsword showed up and asked if he could sit with them, and of all the places he chose to sit, he chose to sit right next to her.

As she looked at him, she thought back to when he had saved her at the docks, when he kissed her.

She quickly slapped the sides of her face, thinking _Stop thinking about that already!_

"You okay Aisha?" Rena asked, snapping Aisha out of her thoughts.

"I-I'm fine! Don't worry about it!" she replied, her face slightly flustered.

"Suuuuuuurrreee" Rena and Elsword both replied. After a moment of silence, Rena suddenly blurted out of all things "So, who's the lucky guy?"

"It's not like that!" Aisha retorted, her face growing even redder. Rena started to giggle a little, getting a kick out of it considering last time, she was on the end of being questioned about her love interests.

"It's not like what?" Elsword asked, a clear smirk on his face, considering he knew exactly what she was thinking. And she wasn't even sure if the smirk was a real one, or if he had put on a pokerface.

"Shut up Eldork!" she replied.

"I don't follow." Eve then replied to the whole conversation. Aisha and Rena looked slightly surprised and confused, while Elsword tried to follow suit, trying to hide the fact that for a moment, his mind flashed back to his days in Elder Castle's basement.

"Well Eve, we think Aisha might have a boyfriend" Rena whispered in Eve's ear.

"Ah, I see. Well, I can tell she is telling the truth it isn't like that." Eve replied.

"Wait what!? How can you tell?" Rena said, slightly surprised.

"It's because I'-"

"It's because she's used to listening to bullcrap!" Elsword said, cutting off Eve midsentence. "This one time, I lied about where I was from, and she believed it for a whole week!" he continued.

"Okay…" Rena replied, caught off guard. Then suddenly, her eyes gleamed, a shine that Aisha knew all too well.

"Did you two ever-" she began to speak, only to be cut off by Elsword.

"No, the only time I tried asking her out, I ended up being slapped into a wall"

At first, Rena laughed and said "Is that so?"

"I'm serious" he said "It was not fun. Painful, but not fun."

And for about 15 seconds, there was an awkward moment of silence.

Aisha then spoke "So, why aren't you up on the roof today?" to try to switch the topic.

She succeeded. "That's because Chung isn't here today, probably sick" Elsword said with a slight shrug.

"And the reason you wanted to eat with us was?" Aisha asked.

"Because the food tastes better when eating with friends. That and eating alone is kinda boring" he replied.

Aisha looked at him for a second. Despite the part at the end, Aisha felt like Elsword's answer wasn't just an answer, but a genuine answer.

But as usual for her, those moments don't tend to last long.

"Speaking of Chung, did you like his hand touching yours Eve?" Rena said, her eyes starting to gleam again, making Eve blush slightly.

Elsword smirked and spoke "So Eve has a fetish for guys with girly hai-" until he was cut off as Eve slapped him hard enough to make him fly into the wall next to them.

Aisha and Rena looked in shock at both Eve and Elsword.

"I'm f-fine" Elsword said as he stood back up, holding the side of his head, slightly dizzy.

"Told you she could do that…ehahahah…"

* * *

_Outside of Chung's House, City of Velder, 4:00pm_

The red haired boy sighed as he walked up toward the small two story house in the residential district.

His cheek was no longer red, but still stung from when Eve slapped him into a wall during lunch. And now, considering how everyone considered him and Chung as 'buddy-buddy', he had to deliver any of the work Chung missed out on since he was sick.

Besides that, he was one of the few people who knew where Chung lived. Like Elsword, he didn't have as many friends as some of their other classmates. In fact, Chung was probably one of the only people who knew Elsword lived in a small apartment.

Elsword then reached the door and rang the doorbell.

_DING-DONG_

After a minute of standing while tapping the ground with his foot, he rang it again.

_DING-DONG_

And no answer came once more after another minute of waiting.

_Maybe he's asleep _Elsword thought, considering the one time he slept over at Chung's house, it took him over 10 minutes to wake Chung up. _Ah well, I'll just throw it in the mail slot_ he thought as he shoved the paperwork in a somewhat orderly fashion into the horizontal slot in the door. He then walked away from the door and proceeded down the street to his home.

Little did he know however, a figure in white had watched the whole scene.

"Now, let's see just who you really are….Elsword" Chung whispered as he stealthily followed Elsword from the rooftops.

* * *

_Hallway outside of Elsword's Apartment, City of Velder, 4:30pm_

There was a smell of sweat in the air as Elsword walked down the hallway of the apartment complex.

Since Chung's house was somewhat out of the way from Elsword's apartment, it had taken him an extra 30 minutes to get to his house. And the heat hadn't helped. He was used to heavy workouts, but with the temperature being near 37 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit), even he couldn't help but sweat like normal people.

Elsword was about to take a breath of relief as he approached the door, but suddenly, his face changed from tired to serious as he looked at the doorknob.

His master had taught him long ago how to tell if someone had tampered with a door within the past 24 hours, even if it was subtle.

And those lessons came into use now. Someone had broken into his home. Someone experienced.

But this raised a much more important note.

If it was someone experienced, they had a clear reason for breaking into his apartment.

His cover was blown.

_The door might be rigged_ he thought as he considered the possibilities of traps in his room.

He decided right there, to instead of use the door, quickly cut apart the wall next to it with a well-aimed set of wind blades, cutting a rectangular hole through the wall.

As he stepped in, he noticed a plastic explosive attached to the door. He had made the right call.

But then, he saw a small shine coming from the building across the road, despite the window shades in the way.

"SHIT!" he yelled as rushed across the room to grab his costume.

He had barely managed to grab his garb and jump out the window before a cannonball was shot into his residence. The apartment he had lived in for the past few years disappeared in a blue explosion. _Well, Penesio is gonna be pissed_ he thought, considering it was Penesio, a local bureaucrat who knew Rune's Sensei well, who had been paying for the place. And now he would have to go through a lot of insurance claims.

He then quickly put his mind back on track as the smoke from the explosion spread throughout the area, giving Elsword the cover he needed to quickly don his uniform without any witnesses.

It was only moments after he had changed his hair color that a gunshot suddenly went past his head. He reacted quickly, moving to dodge the bullets that came from the smoke. However, the fight was not in his favor, which came clear to the Magician as a bullet glanced his shoulder.

_Need to get out of this smoke! Somewhere with not many people! _he thought as he continued to dodge the shots that came from beyond the smoke.

The second a place came to his mind, he quickly shoved his sword in the ground, fire spreading from the blade and into multiple directions. The attack forced the attacker to pause as he was forced to dodge the attack. But it was long enough to give Elsword an opening to jump up to the nearby rooftop.

He then proceeded to run toward the business district. With the Deadly Chaser right on his tail.

* * *

_City Street in the Commercial District, City of Velder, 4:38pm_

"So, you're saying you're like an android, right?" Rena said.

"Yes, but the correct term is Nasod. Are you surprised?" Eve replied.

"Well, after you sent Eldork into a wall, it makes sense" Aisha said.

"Ah, that was a force of habit. Elsword had done that on purpose at one point, and it's been like that ever since." Eve replied to Aisha's answer.

The trio was walking down the street towards the residential district, all of them with bags in hand from shopping except for Rena. Meanwhile, a boy in his later teens with black, spikey hair that had been partially dyed white was lagging behind them. Rena turned around to check up on him.

"Raven, you didn't have to carry all of my bags you know." Rena said to the boy.

"It's ok, this weight is nothing. The heat though…" Raven replied as sweat started to soak his shirt.

"How about we take a quick break then, get ourselves a drink!" she said as she pointed toward a small café a little further down the sidewalk.

"You guys go on without us!" she yelled toward Eve and Aisha.

"You sure!?" Aisha replied.

"We'll be fine!" Rena said, her face partially blushed. Aisha got the message from that.

"Will they be fine? That boy Raven, looked like he was near heat stroke." Eve said.

"They'll be fine, trust me." Aisha replied, while making a mental note that Eve was not familiar with most things love related.

As they walked down the street, Aisha spoke "So, Elsword meant to get you worked up at one point?"

Eve quickly replied "Yes, he believed it would help me after…an accident", her eyes looking away from Aisha slightly. But Aisha saw the torment in her eyes.

"If you don't want me to pry into it, I won't ask" Aisha said.

"That is considerate of you" Eve said, the brightness returning to her eyes.

"Well, I have a pretty go-" Aisha said. But she became unable to finish her sentence as the sound of gunshots filled the air, causing the nearby crowds to panic.

* * *

_One minute earlier, on the rooftops_

Elsword was in a pinch. Unlike the last time he fought the assassin, they were on uneven ground, and considering close the bullets came to the Magician as he dodged the shots, his pursuer clearly had experience in chasing down his targets.

_Crap, I need to lose him somehow! I can't keep fighting him on his terms!_ he thought. He had already been grazed on the shoulder when he was in the smoke, and he had lost track of the amount of times he'd been nearly hit already.

Suddenly, pain shot through his left leg. The assassin managed to graze it, but it was enough to make Elsword tumble.

He fell off the roof of the two story building he was on.

_This is bad! _He thought as he fell. If he hit the ground like this, he would become a sitting duck for the assassin.

However, something managed to cushion his fall.

"OWW!" A familiar voice yelled. He looked to see Aisha under him.

"Aisha! What are you doing here!?" the Magician said hastily.

Aisha replied, clearly annoyed "I could say the same to you idiot! Now get off!"

"Okay bu-" he said as he got up, but suddenly his injured leg gave out.

"Whoa! Are you ok!?" Aisha replied, her tone filled with worry.

"I believe his knee might be sprained" Eve said as she walked toward the two.

"You two need to get out of here!" Elsword yelled, trying to get them to leave.

But his voice came too late as the assassin jumped from the roof, gun at hand and aimed to finish the Magician.

However, Chung hesitated. _What the!? Aisha and Eve!? _he thought. He forced himself to try and carefully aim the gun in such a way it wouldn't hit either of the girls.

But a second was enough.

Suddenly, the Magician and Elsword vanished into thin air, merely less than a second before his bullet could reach his target.

_What the!? Where did he!?_ Chung thought as he looked around. He didn't see the Magician anywhere.

_Did they teleport? Well, if he did, I won't let him get away! Not after that fiasco!_ He thought.

He has mistaken Elsword's accidental involvement of Aisha and Eve to be an intentional involvement of civilians.

* * *

**Elsword: Well, finally time you got this chapter out**

**WVH: Yeah, problem is when I had the time, I didn't really have any inspiration**

**Aisha: …I'm guessing when you didn't, you were playing games, right?**

**WVH: *headshot* …eheheheheh….**

**Eve: I believe that means 'yes'**

**WVH: Well anyhow, I finally introduced Raven!**

**Raven: Yet I only got one or two lines**

**WVH: *headshot yet again* …yeah, I originally planned on adding you in later**

**Ara: When do I get my part!? *teary eyed***

**WVH: Um…you'll be in the next arc, and don't worry, you'll be one of the main characters!**

**Ara: Really!?**

**WVH: Really!**

**Elsword: Seems Wolf is a sucker for crying girls…I wonder if Chung could pull it off**

**Chung: HEY!**

**Eve: That was disrespectful Elsword.**

**Elsword: Oh CRA-*gets slapped by Eve***

**WVH: Well anyhow, I'll try to get the next chapter out soon! See ya! *goes to help Eldork***

**Elsword: Hey! I saw that!**

**WVH: XD**


	9. Chapter 9: Foe or Friend?

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**After working hard to do the first installment of Elsword RSFB Stories, I give you guys the finale of the Deadly Chaser Arc! I hope you all enjoy it!**

**And for those who want RF to make his appearance, that'll start next chapter…and to the SD fans…that's the next main arc…**

**Anyhow, enjoy!**

* * *

_Construction Site, City of Velder, 4:42pm_

"DAH!" the white haired hero cried as a girl in a white cloak fell on him.

"You alright?" Aisha asked him.

"Ugh….you should cut on the sweets." He replied, only to get punched in the stomach.

"Anyhow, where are we? And what happened?" Elsword said as Aisha stepped off of him.

"I think some sort of construction site…and I kinda saved you, dork." She said, looked the other way.

Elsword saw right through her though.

"You teleported because you got scared, didn't you?" he replied.

Her face turned red as she turned around. "S-shut up! You couldn't do it if you tried! Idiot!" she retorted as she pointed her finger at him.

Ignoring her somewhat, he picked himself up as he said "Well, it may have been coincidence, but you saved me back there. Thanks."

Her face turned red for a moment, but then she remembered how the Magician got shot earlier.

"Wait! What about your le-"she yelled, trying to take a look at his leg, but then she saw not a bullet wound, but instead, a small, circle-like scar.

"How did yo-" she began to ask, but then Elsword quickly pushed her to the side, moments before raising his sword to block a set of gunshots.

"You're despicable, you know that?" a voice spoke from where the gunshots came from. It was the white garbed and hooded assassin that had just tried to kill him moments before.

"And why is that?" Elsword replied to his foe as he walked towards him.

"You chose to involve bystanders, that's why" the assassin continued.

"And blowing up an apartment building isn't involving bystanders? You must be a hypocrite."

"So are you" the assassin replied.

The two were now standing face to face. Even Aisha, who was now hiding behind a steel beam, could feel the tension in the air. One was already holding his sword at ready, the other with a pair of pistols at hand and a cannon on his back.

"So then, I say we end this!" they both yelled out at the same time as the two made their move at the same time.

It resulted in a clash of steel, sparks flying off of the Magician's sword and the Chaser's guns as they faced each other down. But as neither budged an inch, both were pushed back by the clash.

Soon enough, the Chaser aimed at his foe and began shooting once more. Yet the Magician was able to dodge his shots with relative ease.

But unlike their last confrontation, the white-clad assassin expected this. Right as the vigilante got into range to attack him, the Chaser almost fluently holstered his two guns and brought out his cannon to parry the attack.

Surprised by this, Elsword was thrown back into the air for a moment.

Right into the cannon's sights.

_CRAP!_ He thought as he looked down the cannon barrel as it glowed with a pale blue light.

The resulting explosion filled the air with a smokescreen of debris.

However, the Chaser decided to stay on guard, feeling a slight chill down his spine.

The reason: The Magician came out of the smokescreen behind the assassin.

Just as the assassin attempted to block his attack, he noticed one thing was off.

The Magician's right hand was empty.

He then quickly jumped back, avoiding the sword the boy had thrown into the air moments before. But he didn't move far enough.

Just as the sword hit the ground, the Magician pushed down on it with his open hand.

"SWORD FIRE: GEYSER!"

It was much like the attack he used before, except this time, there was a lot more power behind it, creating columns of flame rather than walls.

The Chaser barely dodged the attack as he spun his body to the right, countering by shooting with his pistol.

The Magician quickly pulled out his blade to block the shot and ran towards his opponent.

The Chaser then brought up his cannon once more and began shooting in rapid succession, leaving the Magician with no choice but to run to the side.

But however, he then noticed where Aisha was.

She was right in the line of fire.

He then quickly planted down a barrier rune, which while blocking a cannonshot, shattered from the impact, causing Elsword to lose his footing, as well as the grip on his blade.

Just as he lost his footing, the Chaser came through the smoke, his cannon his above his head.

"Elsword!" Aisha yelled, but the two didn't hear her.

He smashed down the cannon into the Magician.

While the mage blocked some of the blow with one of his hands, the force was enough to cause his mask to shatter.

As the dust settled, Elsword was down on the floor, his face revealed, bloodstains on his mouth and next to his right eye, with a gun barrel pointed at his face.

"I knew it…so this is who you really are…" the Chaser said as he looked down at him, his face still covered by the hood.

"Elsw-" he tried to continue, but his sense of danger suddenly kicked in. He bent backwards as a bolt of lightning flew towards his head.

While the bolt didn't hit him, it forced him back as he rolled backwards.

But as he got up, he looked to see Aisha sitting next to Elsword, trying to help him up.

But then, he saw the surprise on their faces.

"Chung?..." they said, almost in unison.

His identity had been revealed as well.

"W-why? Chu-" Aisha began to speak, but she was cut off as Elsword stood up.

"Chung…you knew, didn't you?" Elsword spoke, his tone filled with pain, but his eyes showing almost no sign of it.

"…yeah…" the blonde replied, looking slightly down.

He realized it was because of him Aisha got involved.

"Let's finish this…" Elsword continued as he picked his sword off the ground.

"Right…" Chung replied, pulling out his pair of pistols.

"But Elsword…" Aisha said, but her words died out halfway.

Both of them looked slightly sad, but at the same time, both held a sense of resolve.

Once more, the two ran towards each other and soon, the sound of their weapons clashing filled the unfinished building.

_Why are they still fighting?_ Aisha thought as she watched the spectacle.

Soon enough, both of them knocked away each other's weapons. Yet neither of them went to the side to grab them. Instead, both of them threw punches aimed straight at the other's face. It had become a simple brawl.

_Aren't they friends? _She thought as the fight continued.

Soon enough, their punches became slower and slower.

Chung threw one last punch, but to no avail as Elsword managed to block it "Why?..." Chung began to speak. "Why do you fight?"

Elsword looked at his friend and said

"So I can protect those who shouldn't have to shed blood, even if it ends up costing me my life."

Chung's eyes suddenly widened, the words sounding just like his father's.

* * *

_Throne Room, Hamel Palace, City of Hamel, 8 Years Ago_

Chung cowered in fear, yet tried to hold his breath as he looked as the scene below the rafters he was hiding in.

His father, the King of Hamel, a warrior clad in white armor, who normally towered above his men when he led them, was now beaten and weary. He was kneeling, his left arm was mangled, his armor broken in multiple places, and his long blonde hair drenched red on the end of it.

"Give up, Hamel is lost." A demon in black armor said. His long, spiky hair was as white as the King's armor, with black horns that had a strange blue glow.

"Hmph, maybe but…." The King spoke as he picked himself up, gripping his red and white cannon.

"As long as I can protect those who shouldn't have to shed blood, I'll fight until I have no breath left!" he yelled.

He then swung his cannon at the general, who blocked it, yet was pushed into the air by the sheer force, and almost instantly afterwards, shot a cannonball aimed right for the demon's face.

_BOOOOM!_

The explosion resonated through the palace. Even the rafters Chung was hiding in shook a little.

But just as all seemed well to the young boy, as the smoke settled, his father coughed up blood.

The general, now missing half of his right horn, had impaled the King in the chest.

"FATHER!" Chung yelled. The demon general noticed him almost instantly. But just before he could do anything, he noticed he couldn't move.

"RUN CHUNG!" The King yelled at his son, holding the demon's arm, despite the fact he was dying.

Chung then began to run towards the windows. Yet he could still hear the sounds of the battle behind him.

"Ugh! Why do you persist?" the demon general yelled, kicking the man in the gut multiple times.

Yet he didn't budge, he simply looked at the demon general and said

"Didn't I tell you already? So I can protect people like him, like my son"

Chung began to run faster, tears running from his eyes as he made his escape.

It was the day Hamel had been invaded.

The day it's King was killed by the famed Demon General Scar.

The day it's Prince disappeared without a trace.

* * *

Tears ran through Chung's eyes as he remembered that day.

He then pulled away his punch, his arms now draped by his sides.

"I guess I lose then…"

Chung turned around and started walking away.

"Chung?" Elsword spoke. He tried to reach out towards him but stumbled. But right as he began to fall, Aisha caught him and propped him by the shoulder.

Chung looked over his shoulder and gave them a goofy grin.

"After all…you're my friend, right?"

Elsword laughed a little as he said "Yeah"

Aisha smiled as she watched the two get along again.

Suddenly, Chung fell over, saying "ow!" somewhat passively as he hit the ground.

"Chung!" Aisha yelled as she hobbled her way towards him with Elsword on her shoulder.

"Well, seems you fail at trying to look cool" Elsword joked, getting him an annoyed look from the purplette.

"Yeah, I guess so" Chung chuckled.

Aisha smiled as she said "Idiots"

_I guess boys will be boys _she thought.

* * *

**WVH: And so, the Deadly Chaser Arc has come to a close!**

**Elsword: Took you long enough!**

**WVH: Sorry! I got too absorbed into the Elsword RSFB Stories…and other things….**

**Elsword: *facepalm***

**Aisha: *shrugs* Well, idiots will be idiots I guess**

**WVH: …**

**Chung: …well anyhow, I'm happy I don't have to try and kill Elsword anymore!**

**Elsword: Yeah, for a moment or two there, I thought I was done for…**

**WVH: Well anyhow, tune in next time for the aftermath and the introduction to RF's role in the story!**

**Elsword: Wait! Raven has a role other than being Rena's love interest!?**

**Eve: …*puts on a fresh pair of gloves***

**Raven: …and that's the end of this chapter, and remember to R&amp;R everyone!...*cracks his knuckles* come here Elsword….**

**Elsword: …I was just joking…eheheheheh *runs***


	10. Chapter 10: Aftermath

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 7:00am_

Around the entire classroom, everyone either had faces of shock or curiosity as they looked at their classmates Chung and Elsword.

Both of them were bandaged up just about everywhere, except for their faces, which had a few Band-Aids and gauss patches.

"What the heck happened to them?"

"Who knows, maybe they got involved with a gang or something"

Out of all the people in the room, only Aisha knew what had happened two nights ago.

After their fight, she had to just about literally carry them all the way to her house and bandage them up, and every now and then they had to grit their teeth not to yelp in pain. She thought it was cute, yet idiotic they were trying to be manly about it.

The day after, she had to explain to her sister that they were people who got caught in the crossfire when the Magician was fighting someone. Surprisingly, her sister accepted the excuse and went straight to bed. But it wasn't too much of a surprise. Her sister had to pull off a bunch of all-nighters within the past few weeks considering her employers tended to throw her on the night shift.

Fortunately, both of them were able to walk on their own by the time Noel woke up again, so she didn't have to make any more excuses.

The sound of the classroom door opening snapped Aisha out of her thoughts as Ms. Stella walked in.

"Alright time for att-" she spoke until she looked at towards Elsword and Chung in their sorry state.

"What the heck happened to you two?" she asked.

Elsword answered for them "We sorta….fell down some stairs"

The entire class behind them, including Aisha all had the same thoughts _Yeah right. No one is gonna believe that._

"Meh, whatever. Time for attendance!" the teacher replied.

_SHE ACTUALLY BELIEVED THEM!? _the rest of the class thought in surprise.

As class went on, Aisha noticed how once again, the two were paying attention yet slightly goofing off as usual.

_I guess everything is back to normal…well, as normal as it can be_ Aisha thought with a smile.

* * *

_The Roof, Velder Academy, City of Velder, 12:30pm_

Elsword and Chung were back to their usual routine of eating lunch on the roof together, but with a few extra people.

"Wow! The wind feels so good up here! Why haven't we done this before?" Rena said as she looked over the railing.

"Well, it's because you kept insisting we use one table and make it ours." Aisha replied.

"Does it make a difference where we sit?" Rena said, much to Aisha's annoyance.

She remembered how during their first year, Rena literally kept lecturing her on why they should make a table theirs and that be where they always eat.

She sighed as she looked at the crowd that had now taken the roof. Elsword, Chung, and Raven were already taking spots and chatting, while Eve sat close by to at least hear their chatter.

It started with Elsword asking her to join them on the roof, but as Rena overheard them, she couldn't help but want to join in. And then before long, she invited Raven to join them, and after Eve heard about it, she asked if she could join.

And so, that led to the current moment as Aisha and Rena sat down, completing the circle of friends.

"And so, that's what happened!" Elsword said as the two girls joined the group.

Raven looked at him and said "So what you're saying…is you and Chung started to horse around…and you ended up falling down three flights of stairs?"

"Exactly!" Elsword replied, with Chung nodding in approval, considering Elsword said he was there with them.

"That's bullcrap. Three flights of stairs would kill you." Raven retorted to counter their story.

"If that was true, I would have died from Eve's slaps by now" Elsword joked before he took a bite of his meal.

"He's right, if that was true, he would have died at least 15 slaps ago." Eve replied with her usual monotone voice.

Raven looked at her and asked "How many times have you slapped him?"

Eve pondered for a moment and said "I stopped counting after the 50th time."

"Oh yeah, I remember that one, when I fl-" Elsword spoke, but quickly stopped himself, as he got that feeling that if he said more, he would probably get yet another slap from Eve to add to the list.

Chung looked at him and said "Well? What did you do?"

Elsword looked between the two of them and said "Nevermind" while making a hand gesture Chung knew as _talk about it later_.

"Well anyhow, I never knew Rena had such…interesting people as her friends" Raven said.

"Well, it just sorta happened when I saw Elsword in Aisha's house" she replied.

"RENA! I THOUGHT WE TALKED ABOUT THAT!" Aisha yelled, her red face clearly showing she was flustered.

"Wait, you were in her house…without any supervision?" Chung asked Elsword.

"Pretty much." Elsword answered.

"Nice bro!" Chung replied as they did a fist bump.

"STOP MAKING THINGS WORSE ELDORK!" Aisha yelled in reply.

The rest of the group couldn't help but laugh a little.

However, Raven couldn't help but look at Elsword for a few seconds.

_There's something about this guy…but I can't put my finger on it_ he thought as Aisha started flailing at the top of the redhead's head.

But the thought slipped his mind as he realized his food was starting to go cold and Rena started nudging him by slightly leaning on him.

* * *

_Near Aisha's Home, Residential Area, City of Velder, 5:00pm_

As she walked down the street, Aisha breathed out a sigh of relief mixed with regret.

_Those idiots…at least they're back to normal…I guess_ she thought.

She was happy that the two were getting along again, but she felt like the embarrassment she had earlier wasn't necessary.

_That Eldork…_ she thought, remembering the events that had passed the last few weeks.

She couldn't help but slightly think of Elsword in a different light when she thought about the week before, and when he saved her life.

_Maybe…maybe he's the sort of guy I-_

She suddenly started bonking her head, her cheeks even more red.

"NO WAY! I'd never date that idiot!" she said out loud. Once she realized she spoke out loud, she looked around, the thought that someone heard her say that embarrassing.

But there was no one around.

She breathed a sigh of relief and then walked to the front door of her house.

"Sis I'm home!" she said as she opened the door.

But the second she stepped in, she saw Elsword in the kitchen, opening the oven, and her sister was sitting on the couch.

"Yo Aish!" Elsword replied with a smile and a hand waving to her.

For a few moments, Aisha was completely speechless.

"What. The. Hell. Is. He. Doing. Here?" Aisha asked her sister as she pointed towards the redhead.

"Oh, his guardian is a friend of mine and asked if he could stay here until his apartment gets rebuilt." Noel said.

"Yeah, there was a sort of gas explosion while I was out" Rune replied. Though Aisha had a feeling the explosion wasn't one from a gas leak.

"And don't worry, I plan on somewhat paying for staying here." Elsword said as he took a roast out of the oven.

"He may not look like it, but he's a good cook" Noel said to Aisha.

"But WHY DOES HE HAVE TO STAY HERE!?" Aisha yelled, just the thought of him sleeping here again slightly repulsive, especially after the stunt he pulled the first time.

"Hey, my hands are tied. His guardian is a good friend of mine." Noel replied. Meanwhile, Rune seemed to be ignoring the situation, but he was quietly listening in. And he already had a good guess what was going to happen next.

"Okay, which friend? If it's one of your bosses, I will kick him out myself!" Aisha continued ranting.

"It's Penensio. Remember? Your first teacher?" Noel answered.

"Wait…THE PENENSIO!?" Aisha replied in shock. He was a world renowned professor at Lurensia University. Before he became a professor though, he had taught Aisha the basics of her magic.

"Yes, the Penensio." Noel spoke. Aisha couldn't help but start looking at both of them back and forth.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?" Aisha yelled, her voice echoing through the neighborhood.

* * *

_Elsewhere in the Residential District of Velder…_

A familiar couple was walking down the street towards an intersection. And a few people couldn't help but look at the two.

While Raven didn't like being stared at often, he felt a little bit more comfortable with Rena by his side. It was as if though being with her was like when he once visited Hamel several years ago.

Soon enough, they reached the intersection. However, Rena then let go of him and began walking across the street. This was where they parted ways every day except for a spare few.

"I'll see you tomorrow Rena" Raven said.

"Later Rav! I love you!" she said waving backwards before she began jogging away.

Afterwards, he then turned to the right down the sidewalk and made his way towards the city.

As he walked down, he noticed one or two people staring at him every now and then.

He had learned over time to ignore it, as it couldn't be helped. After a certain incident several years ago, both he and he older brother lost their left arms. He was fortunate enough to have it replaced by a doctor from Altera, but he couldn't help but feel like he became more of an outcast since he got the arm.

It was Rena though that pulled him out of that. She was one of the first people he met who didn't even ask about his arm first thing. And even more, she never stared much at the arm at all. She accepted him for who he was.

The thought of her comforted him.

But as he thought about her, his mind couldn't help but wander to that of the red haired boy from earlier.

_Just who is he? Maybe he has something to do with what's been going on in town recently? _He considered in his thoughts.

He then shook his head as he thought _Maybe I'm just overthinking it_.

He then walked to the door of an apartment building in the center of town. He went up the stairs to the second floor and opened the first door that he came to.

"Hey Bro, I'm home!" he spoke as he opened the door.

As he opened the door, he spot his brother, dressed in his officer uniform as usual, sitting on the couch.

"Welcome home, Raven" Edan replied.

* * *

_Aisha's Home, Residential District, City of Velder, 9:30pm_

"So why did you decide to stay here of all places?" Aisha asked Elsword.

The living room was mostly quiet now, as Noel was called over to the office, yet again, for overtime. Sometimes, Aisha even considered her sister was a workaholic.

"Well, Chung sorta blew my place to smithereens when he tried to kill me" Elsword replied. He knew by now that Aisha probably knew when he was lying, so he decided to stick to the truth.

"I thought as much" she spoke with a sigh of annoyance.

"Though honestly, when I asked Penensio if he had friends I could stay with, I did not expect your place."

"Is that so?" the purplette replied, part of her content with the fact he didn't choose her house on purpose.

Elsword then got a grin on his face as he said "What? Thought I meant to come here so I kiss you again?"

Aisha couldn't help but karate chop him on the head as she yelled "NOT IN YOUR LIFE!"

After she calmed down, she asked Elsword "But why not stay at Chung's house? He's your friend too, isn't he?"

Elsword's face then went from joking around to slightly serious "Because, even I don't know who he made enemies with by not killing me. He'd probably ask me to stay low for the next few weeks."

Aisha didn't expect that answer, and said "I see" while looking down to the floor.

"Don't worry though, we'll be fine. I'm sure of it. So cheer up." he said with his usual goofy grin. Aisha couldn't help but smile a little.

"And by the way, cute panties" he spoke. Aisha then looked down to see he was lifting her skirt up to sneak a peek.

Outside the house, a cat was walking on a nearby fence. However, the when the words "PEEEEERRVERRRRT!" came out of the house as well as the sound of a slap, the cat couldn't help but listen to its instincts to run away.

Inside, Elsword was down on the floor, left side of his face now a bright red as Aisha walked towards the stairs with a "Hmph".

As she reached the stairwell, she looked back towards the boy on the floor and yelled "I better not catch you doing that again, IDIOT!"

As she went out of view, Elsword picked himself up and rubbed the side of his cheek.

"She hits hard enough to give Sensei a run for his money." he said as he sat down on the couch.

* * *

_Chung's House, City of Velder, 9:05pm_

The room was once again dark. And Chung was once again having a conversation with his client on the monitor.

"So then, you want to cancel my request?" A garbled voice spoke though the monitor.

"Yes." He replied.

"Why do this? I thought you were a man of money." The garbled voice retorted.

"Well, I do have my own values" Chung continued. All was going according to plan.

"I see, is that why you returned my payment?" the voice asked.

"Yes, that and other things." Chung spoke.

"What do you mean by other things?" the voice replied.

Chung closed his eyes for a moment and focused. He knew the next set of words he would say would make the man on the other side of his screen his enemy.

Well, to Chung, this client had already become his enemy. Especially after uncovering information about his client the day before.

"Like the fact that you're one of the key players of Black Arms."

For a few moments, the room was filled only with the static that came from the monitor.

"I thought client information was confidential." The client replied. Chung smiled because this was the response he was hoping to hear.

"Well normally yes, but after finding a few things about your target, I couldn't help but question my client." Chung spoke. "And besides, I've been looking for your lot for quite some time. Ever since the Fall of Hamel."

The words created silent tension for both parties.

"I see…you must be a survivor of Hamel…" The voice replied

"Yes, and I swear on the name Seiker that one day, I will destroy your organization, and kill your demon general known as Scar, all to avenge the people of Hamel." Chung spoke with resolve. He had finally found the group he had been searching for.

The client then spoke one more time "…so the bloodline of the White Knight King still lives…very well then. We are now enemies, and we shall kill you and the other interloper." After finishing, the static cut off. The man on the other side had ended the transmission.

Chung breathed a breath of relief turning off the monitor.

He then walked to the closet and opened up the secret compartment.

But then, he opened a small dour in the middle. It held a picture of his family from 9 years ago.

"I finally found them, and I even made a real friend…Father" he said with a small tear forming in his eye.

* * *

**Elsword: D'wahh, that end was so heartwarming!**

**Aisha: Yeah, but it doesn't change the fact you're a pervert!**

**Chung: It's just, after Hamel fell, I always had to lie to people about who I am. It's just so nice to finally have friends I can actually talk to *starts to cry***

**Eve: Don't worry Chung, let it out.**

**Elsword: Anyhow though, so Raven is Edan's brother in this?**

**WVH: Yep, and not only that, there's more.**

**Raven: But we're not telling you until next time**

**Elsword: Well, can't be helped.**

**Ara: I just want to join everyone soon!**

**Elsword: Don't worry Ara, you'll get your time.**

**Aisha: So, Black Arms is the sort of antagonist organization for this?**

**WVH: Yep! In fact, they were the ones behind your kidnapping too**

**Aisha: …can we go kill them all already?**

**WVH: Well, hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! And don't forget to R&amp;R!**

**Aisha: HEY! Don't ignore m-**


	11. Chapter 11: Black and Silver

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Note this chapter starts from when Raven entered his home from last chapter, so yes, going slightly back in time a little XD**

* * *

_Raven and Edan's Apartment, City Of Velder, 5:30pm_

"Welcome home, Raven" Edan said as Raven came through the door and into the living room.

Their apartment was a decent size, it included a large living room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and two bedrooms. Though half of the living room was filled with cabinets and a work desk with a computer. Though he didn't always look like it, Edan was definitely a workaholic, well, in Raven's eyes that is.

The other half had a couch with a coffee table set in front of it, and even further from it was a plasma screen television mounted to the wall. It was currently on a weather station, showing a radar which showed that it was going to be clear skies tomorrow.

"So, how was school?" Edan asked his brother.

"I would say the usual, but I met some of Rena's friends today" Raven replied as grabbed a can of soda from the fridge and sat on the couch next to Edan.

Edan put his finger on his chin for a moment as he said "Rena? Oh, right! That elf girl you had over once or twice." He then got a grin on his face as he joked "The one with the boobs."

For a moment, it seemed Raven was going to do a spit-take when those words came out, but he managed to stop himself from doing so.

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT EDAN!" he yelled, meanwhile Edan couldn't help but yet out a laugh.

After Edan stopped laughing, he asked "So, you were hanging out with Rena's friends?"

"Yeah…though one or two of them are a little bit weird" Raven answered, thinking of the feeling he got from Elsword earlier that day.

"Well, everyone is a bit weird during high school. Haven't you heard of puberty?" Edan replied to the answer, thinking back to his own days in high school. "Like one time I-"

But Raven cut him off as he said "Not that! I mean one or two of them seem a little suspicious."

Edan waved his hand a little as he replied "Don't worry about it"

"But I-"

"I Said Don't Worry About It!" Edan said, raising his voice in response, his tone not of a brother, but of a police chief.

Raven eyes widened in fear for a moment, but he then looked downwards.

Edan then put his hand on his shoulder as he said "I'm sorry, but you're not a member of the police anymore Raven. You're probably being paranoid."

"Yeah, I guess" Raven replied, his eyes still glued towards the floor.

"Anyhow, I heard you have a camping trip tomorrow, right?" Edan spoke, trying to change the subject.

It worked as Raven looked up slightly, replying "Yeah, we're going over to a campground in Ruben. Rena told me the place is a lot more peaceful than it is here."

"Well, nature does have its perks" Edan said with a soft smile on his face.

After a moment or two, Edan closed his eyes and spoke "So, did you pack yet?"

After a moment of silence, Raven's eyes widened as he got up and yelled "CRAP! CRAP! CRAP!" as he ran to his room.

Edan let out a sigh and said to himself "That's my little brother."

He then got himself up as he said "Well, guess I should make dinner then before I go back to the office."

* * *

_A few hours later_…

"Sigh, maybe he's right" Raven said to himself as he laid on his bed. He looked out the window next to him to see the streets outside. This part of town was always lit up, so when they originally moved here, he had a hard time falling asleep. But he got used to it over time.

But what was harder to get used to was his nasod arm. He lifted it up in front of himself to look at it. It was made up of a black metal with orange circuits that protruded on the outside, and the hand was made to also work as a claw.

Looking at the machinery made him think about the incident.

The one that resulted in both he and his brother losing their left arms.

* * *

_Five Years Ago, Warehouse at the Docks, City Of Velder, 8:00pm_

In the middle of a dark warehouse, with containers pilled all over the place, a boy with short black hair was tied to a steel beam that went up to the ceiling. He was blindfolded, and his face was smeared with blood.

He was unconscious, but he caught a voice or two every now and then.

"….Edan"

"….stupid cop…."

"Let's…a….age"

Suddenly, we could feel someone slapping his face.

"Rise and shine brat." A voice said.

He tried to see the man's face, but the blindfold made it too dark to see anything other than silhouettes.

"Listen brat, your brother, that stupid police captain, is gonna make a deal with us" the man continued.

_My brother!? Why? _The boy tried to speak, but his mouth had been tied up as well, the only thing being heard was a "Mmmpmh!? Mpppmh!?"

The man had a clear idea of what the boy was trying to say as he spoke "You see, your brother put one of our bosses in jail, and we had an agreement with the chief we wouldn't be sought after. Thing is-"

As the man continued talking, the boy tried to think about how he got into this mess.

_Ok, I was walking home from school. On the way back, I said hi to some of my brother's co-workers. And then after a little bit, I turned a corner and then everything suddenly wen bla-_

However, he was cut off as the man suddenly kicked him in the gut "HEY! DON'T YOU IGNORE ME!" the man yelled as he continued to kick him.

"Mpppmmh!" came out of the boy's mouth as he tried to scream.

"Well then, if you're just gonna ignore me, I might as well get straight to the point!" the man said after he stopped kicking the boy.

"You see, we need to send your brother something so he knows you're here. But I honestly think hair and fingers just don't get the point across." He continued. For a moment, the blindfold slid just enough so the boy could see the man's face.

The man had short blond hair and wore a black suit, but however, it was the man's wild looking eyes and the sword in his hand that made the boy's eyes widen.

"I think, I'LL SEND HIM THIS!" he yelled as he swung down the sword. Suddenly, the boy felt a surge of pain coming from his left side. The pain was absolutely horrible. Then once again, everything went black.

"Raven….Raven!" a voice called out.

The boy opened his eyes, though everything seemed a little blurry, to see his older brother's face, it was smeared with blood, but he didn't seem to have any cuts on it.

"Are you okay? Raven!" his older brother spoke again.

"B-Big Brother?" the boy said as his sight became clearer.

It was his older brother, dressed in his police uniform.

But there was two differences. His uniform was stained in blood in multiple places.

And he was missing an arm.

"Br-brother…you're a-arm" he said.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. You'll be safe now" Edan replied.

Soon enough, the sound of police sirens were heard through the docks. And if one listened closely enough, the sound of a boy crying over the fact his brother lost his arm.

* * *

Raven had learned later that his brother went there on his own and in the process of incapacitating Raven's captors, he had lost his arm in a fight with the man who had cut off Raven's own arm.

After both of them got prosthetic nasod arms, Edan started to distance himself from Raven, spending more time at his job than at home, and he told Raven to never visit the police station again. At first, Raven didn't understand why, but over time, he started to see that his brother had become an enemy for a lot of people, and Raven could easily get into a situation like that again if he kept it up. He wanted Raven to live a normal life.

"Sigh, sorry brother, but old habits die hard" Raven said as he looked up at the ceiling.

He decided he was going to tail the mysterious redhead.

* * *

_Lake Noahs Campground, Near the Village of New Ruben, 11:00am_

The sun was shining high above in a clear blue sky, its radiance reflected in a beautiful lake surrounded by a forest green with life.

The woods were filled with sounds of birds chirping happily, and the weather was perfect.

And despite all this, two figures laying in the sand in the campsite on the southern shore of the lake stuck out like a sore thumb.

Both of them had bags under their eyes, looking as if though they regretted one thing.

_I should've gotten more sleep_ Elsword and Raven thought in unison.

"C'mon guys! Don't you want to join?" their friends yelled from their left, standing next to a volleyball net.

"I-I'll pass" Raven replied.

"Too….sleepy" Elsword muttered half awake.

However, both of them suddenly snapped out of it as splashes of cold water hit them in the face.

"OK OK STOP ALREADY!" they yelled for mercy. As the splashing stopped, they noticed it was Eve who was splashing them.

"What? Cold water tends to help people become more awake." Eve said almost innocently.

Elsword shook the water off his hair and then replied "You could have warned us firs-", but was cut off as he caught the volleyball that went toward him.

This took Raven by surprise for a second as he thought _That was fast! But his reflexes were even faster! Who is this guy?_

"You trying to take my head off Chung!?" He yelled towards his friend who happened to send the ball at him a few moments ago.

"Maybe, but it was more of a challenge." Chung replied.

_How in the heck was that just a challenge?_ Raven thought in response.

"Alright you're on!" Elsword replied to Chung.

_You gotta be kidding_ Raven thought. But as he saw them play, despite their strength, they looked normal.

He was snapped out of his thoughts as Rena shouted "C'mon Raven, join in!"

"Ah what the hell." He said, giving up the idea of not joining.

As he stood on the court, he saw Rena's smile and couldn't help but smile as well.

"HEADS UP!" Elsword yelled.

"Hmm?" Raven said as he turned his head forward, only to get hit in the face with the volleyball, knocking him down.

"OH MY EL ARE YOU OK!?" Rena said as she and the others went to his side.

He managed to get himself up and replied "I'm fine…I think…"

_OK, these two are not normal_ he thought as everyone went back to their spots for the game.

* * *

_Two hours later…_

Raven winced in pain as Rena used an alcohol cloth on his face. After the game continued, Raven was hit in the face at least 3 more times. It ended when Raven decided to use his nasod arm, which caused the ball to pop on contact.

"Sheesh, what is with that kid?" he said, remembering just how hard that first ball was.

"You shouldn't worry about it Raven. Some people are just like that." She replied to his question.

"I guess" he said looking up before he winced again from the alcohol swab.

"OH YEAH? I BET I COULD GET SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOU!" Came from inside the cabin.

_What now?_ Raven thought as he got up and entered the cabin.

"Alright, whoever bags the bigger animal wins, deal?" Elsword said, pointing his finger at Chung.

"You are on!" Chung replied with determination.

"What's going on now?" Raven said, curious about what they were talking about.

"We're having a hunting competition. We get dinner, and show who's better at it." Elsword spoke.

Chung added in "Yeah, but I'll be the one gloating Els. Want to join Raven?"

Raven considered it as he cupped his chin.

_This might be a chance for me to figure out something_ he pondered.

"Alright, I'll join."

* * *

_4 hours later_

Raven sighed as he made his way through the woods.

He didn't expect it to be so tiring, and he had already lost track of the other two. Whoever they were, they were clearly experienced at traveling in the wilderness.

_Maybe they aren't originally from Velder_ he thought. After all, most of the kids from town couldn't run through woods without tripping on tree trunks. He didn't like to admit it, but while Elsword and Chung easily jogged through the bramble, Raven had tripped at least 3 times.

Suddenly, he heard a bush moving to his left, causing him to jump back. When it stopped shaking, a small rabbit jumped out of the bush and back towards the way he came.

He spoke "Sigh, this is not for a city boy li-" just before he was suddenly lifted upside down by a rope trap.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" he yelled as the rope pulled him up a few feet.

"Raven! You messed up my trap!" Elsword said as he walked out of another bush.

"U-uh…I'm sorry…but could you get me down?" Raven asked the redhead.

"Ah, sure." Elsword replied as he pulled out a knife and walked toward the supporting end of the trap.

Raven realized exactly what was going to happen, yelling "Wait wait wait!" before Elsword cut the rope, causing him to fall on his head.

"Ouch!" he winced as he sat up.

"Ya know, that could have been worse man. You need to watch yourself in the woods." Elsword explained as he helped Raven up.

"Got it" Raven replied. He then saw this as a good opportunity to get some answers.

"So, you know the woods well?" Raven asked him.

Elsword replied with a smile as he said "Yeah, I used to come here a lot as a kid, mostly with my si-" but cut himself off as his face turned into a frown as he turned away.

Raven realized what was probably going to come out of his mouth next and what may have happened.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said anything"

"It's ok. It happens every now and then." Elsword replied to his apology. He then cracked his neck a little and turned around, his face once more with a smile as he said "Well, let's get going! We got some dinner to catch!"

"Right" Raven replied. Soon enough, they were walking through the forest once more, though this time, Elsword was walking so Raven could keep up.

_I guess he's like me in a way, carrying a dark past and heavy burden_ he thought as he followed the redhead.

But before he could think anymore, he was lifted up into the air once again by yet another rope trap.

"Oh come on Raven!" Chung yelled as he came out from behind a tree. Meanwhile, Elsword was rolling on the ground and laughing at how Raven had basically fell for the same type of trap twice.

* * *

_Two hours later_

By the time they walked back into the camp, Raven certainly felt lightheaded. He had ended up messing up almost all of their hunting traps except the few that had already caught an animal or two. They had brought back with them some rabbits that had been caught by the few traps Raven did not walk near.

"We got some rabbit stew tonight!" Elsword said as they entered the cabin. However, everyone was already eating apparently.

The three of them looked at the food they were eating, slightly confused.

"D-did we miss something?" Chung asked the closest person, which happened to be Rena.

"Well, while we were waiting for you guys, this giant fish came out of the lake and destroyed the boathouse" Rena answered.

"Wait, was it a giant eel?" Elsword asked in response.

"Yes actually" Aisha replied as she walked into the conversation.

"I told em that thing was still kicking" Elsword chuckled. "That's probably the fifth boathouse it wrecked"

After Elsword stopped laughing, he asked "So, where did you get all the food though?"

Rena and Aisha looked toward Eve and said in unison "Well…Eve sorta slapped it to death."

There was a small moment of silence among the group.

The silence broke as Elsword laughed a bit while Chung and Raven's jaws dropped.

"H-how?" Raven said as he looked at Eve.

"W-why?" Chung said as he looked at Eve and the remains of it scattered on plates throughout the cabin.

Eve looked at them and answered "As Elsword may have told you before, my slaps are literally made of steel. And besides, it had bad manners for destroying property like that and I thought it would serve as a very nutritional dinner. As you people say, killing two birds with one stone, correct?"

"Y-yeah" the two boys replied on unison. They then looked at Elsword, who had supposedly been the target of many of Eve's slaps.

_No wonder I had a hard time killing him_ Chung thought.

_What is with these people!?_ Raven thought.

"I saved some for you Chung, would you like some?" Eve asked as she moved over a little to reveal a plate of the eel.

It was enough to snap Chung out of it as he replied "S-sure!", though he couldn't help but think in the back of his mind _Note to self, do not make Eve angry_.

Meanwhile, Raven had decided mentally on one thing.

_These guys are not normal. But, it's not like they're bad or anything I guess_ he thought as he and Rena sat down.

* * *

_Downtown, City Of Velder, 11:30pm_

A woman was running down an alley that was almost pitch black. Blood dripped onto the ground from her left shoulder, cupped by her other hand.

She stopped for a moment to look at her wound but heard laughter coming from behind her.

Laughter that belonged to the person who attacked her.

She proceeded to running down the alley, towards the source of light that came from the street.

As she ran, the laughter slowly faded. Soon enough, nearly at the exit, she stopped and breathed in relief.

Then suddenly, a hand cupped her mouth and a red sword went through her stomach.

"Oh come on, the fun has only started" a man's voice spoke from behind her.

She tried to scream and reach out towards the light of the street, but the man pulled her away and back into the darkness.

Not long after, her screams echoed through the alleyway, reaching the ears of bystanders, one who happened to be a young police officer with spiked black hair.

He pulled out his pistol and ran over to a wall next to the alleyway.

Before he peeked the corner though, the screaming stopped. After he made a note of this, he took a quick breath as he flipped past the corner with his gun aimed down the alley.

"Police! Put your hands up!" he yelled. However, he got no response. After waiting a few moments, he slowly walked down the alley until he entered the dark.

As soon as his eyes got used to the darkness, he cupped his free hand as he nearly puked.

The woman who screamed had been stabbed and slashed so many times she barely looked human anymore. The only part that remained unscathed was her head, her face still twisted in horror from the moment she died.

After he got ahold of himself, he got on his radio in order to report the scene, as he did so though, he noticed one thing out of place on the woman's shoulder.

A single strand of silver hair.

* * *

**Chung: Well, we had a lot of fun, but to think something that bad happened while we were gone.**

**Raven: Yeah, it even gives me the shivers**

**Aisha: Something tells me we'll be meeting the killer soon, aren't we?**

**Elsword: Hmm…silver hair…**

**Aisha: Do you know something Els?**

**Elsword: Maybe…hmm**

**Aisha: Okay, now I'm really scared!**

**WVH: Don't worry, you won't meet him immeadiately!**

**All of them: Oh thank El!**

**WVH: However, we will be finally bringing Ara into the story**

**Ara: I've been waiting for so long! Thank El! I'll do my best!**

**Elsword: …wait….is the killer who I t-**

**WVH: Anyhow, -**

**Elsword: Hey! Don-**

**WVH: I hope you all enjoyed this filler-ish chapter. Be sure to R&amp;R! We'll see you next time!**


	12. Chapter 12: Clumsiness And Bloodlust

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Finally on the next arc. And for those of you wondering, yes, Ara is finally entering the series!**

* * *

_An Alley in Downtown Velder, City of Velder, 12:30am_

"Have to say, this guy is a piece of work" Edan said as he looked at a mangled corpse. The sidewalk had been taped off and the street was filled with the bright blue and red lights of emergency and police vehicles.

This was the third murder within the past five days. All of which were extremely brutal, the crime scenes had blood all over the place, the victim's bodies torn to shreds minus their heads.

"It's definitely the same killer. It was done the same way as the other two." One of the crime scene investigators said.

"Could it be an organization though?" one of the lieutenants next to Edan suggested.

"Can't tell at this point. The only evidence we have at this point is the bodies and these silver hairs that keep popping up." the investigator replied.

"Well, make sure you put the report in my office later" Edan said before turning around and heading back to his vehicle.

Before he got a chance to open the door though, his lieutenant walked up next to him and asked "Think it could be the vigilante?"

Edan let out a sigh and then pointed to the crime scene. He then spoke "Look above the body"

The lieutenant looked at him questionably as he replied "okay….you mean those slash marks?"

"Yeah" Edan replied as he continued. "See how they're aligned? That wasn't made by a sword, but a claw."

The lieutenant looked back toward Edan "And how would you kno-" but he cut himself off as he looked at the chief's claw "oh, right."

Edan looked at him for a second and then back to the scene "Besides that though, from the convicts we caught recently that supposedly came into contact with the Magician said he used a blunt sword as his main weapon"

The lieutenant eyes opened in surprise for a few seconds. "Really? Wow, I guess I should have given it more thought." He said as he scratched the back of his head.

As Edan got into the car and turned the ignition, one thought crossed his mind.

_If not the Magician though, who?_

* * *

_Same Time, Aisha's House, City of Velder_

The house was quiet, almost all the rooms filled with a darkness that only the moon could shine through.

However, one light came from the living room. A single lamp.

Elsword had been sitting on the couch next to the lamp for about an hour. Despite the fact he knew he had school tomorrow, he felt that the subject he needed to discuss was a lot more important.

Suddenly, a small breeze came into the room. He looked at the direction of the breeze to reveal his friend Chung in his Deadly Chaser garb was sitting on the windowsill.

"Took you long enough" Elsword said, his tone slightly sarcastic, but his eyes as serious as could be.

"Sorry, I wanted to see just what we're dealing with here. It's bad" Chung replied, almost gagging at the memory of the crime scene he looked at from afar through a scope.

"So, I take it he's the Deadly Chaser then?" A voice said from the shadows of the living room.

Chung was about to react when Elsword stopped him with his hand. "Relax, he's a friend of mine" Elsword said as his friend stepped out of the shadows.

The man was a little bit older than them, around his early 20s, and had short gray hair. He was wearing a black cloak that covered up what seemed to be a police uniform.

"This is Lowe, he's an info broker. That and he also works with the police." Elsword said to Chung as he introduced the broker.

Chung looked in surprise for a second as he said "The police? Can we trust him?"

The broker scratched the back of his head as he replied "I can understand if you don't trust me considering my ties with them" he then pointed to Elsword as he continued "But his master turned my life around when I met him, so I plan on helping him out in any way I can."

Chung looked at him for a moment and pulled his hand away from his holster.

"Alright then, I believe you" he said as he sat down on the chair not taken.

After everything calmed down, Elsword looked towards Lowe and asked him "So, what are we dealing with here?"

Lowe replied "From what we can tell on our side, we believe it to be the work of a serial killer. There's been three murders so far. And at every scene, there has been strands of silver hair."

Chung responded to this with "Silver! Does that put Elsword under suspicion?"

Lowe quickly answered "No, when I asked the chief about it, he said that the weapon used was a blade, and the Magician uses a blunt sword, am I right?"

Chung took a moment to ponder for a second at the information "I see, you have a point."

Lowe continued "From what we can tell, the killer uses a sword and some type of claw and has silver hair. And besides that, all the killings so far occurred at night."

Elsword looked down for a second pondering all of this. He then raised his head and asked the broker "Know what your superiors are going to do about this?"

"They plan on looking through some records as well as set up more officers for patrol. And besides that, all patrolling officers were asked to keep an eye out for anyone with silver hair." Lowe answered.

Elsword then replied "Thank you Lowe, we'll make sure to keep an eye out. So watch your back."

Lowe made a soft smile as he said "My pleasure. See ya." He said as he walked toward the window. He jumped out of the house and made his way into the shadows.

Chung looked at Elsword for a moment, wondering just who this master of his was.

Elsword cut off his thoughts though as he said "So, got any ideas?"

It took a moment for Chung to recollect himself before he replied "I think if I find him, I might be able to track him somehow."

"Alright, thanks." Elsword replied. For a moment there was silence between them before Elsword let out a sigh.

"Sorry to drag you into this Chung. I know you have enough to deal with as is" Elsword said to the blonde. Chung looked at him for a second and let out a small laugh.

"I think it's too late for me not to be dragged into your vigilante life" he replied with a smile on his face.

"True." Elsword said with a small smile.

Meanwhile on the stairs, a pair of purple eyes looked at the two. Aisha had basically heard the whole conversation.

While she smiled at the small heartwarming scene, she could help but worry.

A serial killer was on the loose, and those two boys were probably going to put their lives on the line to stop the killer.

* * *

_Velder Academy, City Of Velder, 7:30am_

It was another bright morning as the sun shone through the classroom windows. Though there was tension in the air. Word had slowly gotten around about the murders. Even Aisha noticed considering there was stuff about it all over the internet.

Many of them were already putting together there was a serial killer on the loose.

Aisha took a look at the guy that was supposedly going to stop the said serial killer. And she couldn't help but have a doubt or two considering he had his head back and was sleeping at his desk.

Rena tapped her shoulder and commented "Looks like Els had another late night."

"Seems so." Aisha replied.

_Guess it can't be helped, considering the kind of guy he is _Aisha thought.

Suddenly, the second the door opened, Elsword snapped right up into his seat as if though he wasn't asleep moments ago.

While some of the class was slightly shocked at how fast he reacted, Ms. Stella ignored them as she brought out her clipboard for attendance.

While the teacher began to call out names, Elsword was thinking about something else.

_I need to figure out how to get this guy…should I wait for a murder to happen? No, that would be just as bad as him. Maybe I should check all the ones that happened already, maybe they all occurred in the sa-_

"Elsword Sieghart!" the teacher called out, snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked around for a moment and realized his name had probably been called multiple times.

"H-here" he responded. Afterwards, Ms. Stella continued to go down the list.

Rena whispered to Aisha "Wow, he seems out of it today."

Aisha replied "He's probably thinking about the murders."

Rena looked at her for a second and said "I guess you have a point, anyone would be worried. Maybe a friend of his happened to be one of the victims."

"Maybe." Aisha replied, though she knew she couldn't tell Rena the truth. Not only would it drag her into the mess, but then she'd probably lose her hearing considering Rena knew Aisha liked the Magician to begin with.

However, their conversation was suddenly cut off as Ms. Stella spoke "Now, I have three announcements", causing not only Aisha and Rena to go silent, but everyone else as well. Ms. Stella almost never made announcements.

"First, as you may know, English teacher Mr. Hoffman has retired as of last week. So, we have a new teacher taking his position." She announced.

_Well, we all knew this was coming _Aisha thought. She liked Mr. Hoffman considering he was not only kind, but well versed in the liberal arts. They even had a public speaking section at one point just because one of the students said they needed help practicing for a speech they had to do for one of the festivals.

"Second, we have another transfer student." The teacher continued.

"Eh!?" half of the classroom replied in surprise.

To most of the class, two transfer students are midterms was unheard of. But Ms. Stella ignored them as she continued.

"Come in" she spoke towards the door.

A girl with long black hair and a white hairpin walked into the room. She had bright orange eyes that had a little bit of red eyeliner above them. However, unlike their last transfer student, she was shaking a little.

_She's nervous_ everyone in the classroom thought.

She turned toward the class and said "H-hello everyone, my name is A-Ara Haan"

For a moment, the room was silent.

Suddenly, to everyone's surprise, it was Elsword who stepped up and held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you Ara, my name's Elsword" he said with a grin.

Literally half the classroom was either shocked, or assuming Rune was gonna try to hit on her later. Though Aisha could tell his smile was slightly fake.

She guessed he was trying to kill two birds with one stone; trying to get himself to not think so hard about what to do about the serial killer, and help the girl get over her anxiety.

But then Aisha remembered the day Elsword entered the school district as a transfer student himself. Even he was a little bit nervous back then.

_I guess it's sympathy _she thought as she watched Ara shake his hand. She had stopped shaking now.

Ms. Stella decided to take the fact Elsword helped her differently though as she said "Since it seems she's comfortable with you, Chung, move up to next to Eve and Ara you sit next to Elsword."

Chung's cheeks turned bright red as he replied "O-okay" as he stood up and moved towards Eve's seat. Meanwhile, Elsword sat down and Ara sat right next to him.

For some reason though, Aisha thought _Elsword likes me though, righ-No no no! I don't like him like that!_

"You okay Aisha?" Rena asked her, which made Aisha realize she was slapping herself.

"I-I'm fine" she replied, thought she couldn't help but think _I don't like him….right?_

Ms. Stella ignored the chatter as she continued "Lastly, there will be an 8:00pm curphew in effect until we get notified otherwise.

This created a lot of tension in the classroom. Aisha could hear some of her classmates whispering the words "Serial killer" all around the room.

However, that tension quickly changed form as Ms. Stella spoke "Now let's start class, so shut your yaps or I'll throw you in detention, got it!?" Now instead of tension from the curphew, everyone was worried they were going to get detention if they kept talking.

The reason: Today was Ms. Vanessa's day to run it. And everyone who ever had detention with her said it was not worth getting detention with her. Ever.

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 4:30pm_

"Man, I thought that day would never end" Chung said as he and Elsword exited the building.

"Agreed. We really need to stop staying up so late" Elsword replied.

Chung laughed a little as he said "I don't see that happening soon."

"Right." The redhead replied. He and Chung both knew that until the serial killer was caught, both of them were probably going to have a lot of late nights.

"So, got any plans with Eve?" Elsword said with a grin, teasing his friend.

"What do you mea-it's not like that!" Chung replied with red cheeks.

"Suureee" Elsword said, his grin as mischievous as ever.

Chung then got his own grin as he spoke "Ya know, I could say the same abou-"

He was cut off as an "Ouch!" came from behind them.

They looked around to see the new girl, Ara, had just tripped.

"You okay?" Elsword said as he squatted down.

"I-I'm fine! This happens to me all the time." She said as she started to lift herself up. Her face was red with embarrassment.

The two then noticed a lot of textbooks that were on the ground. Most of them were pretty new, their covers showing almost no sign of wear and tear.

"Let us help you with these. Carrying that many is pretty hard after all." Elsword said as he started to pick up one of the books.

Just as he was about to hand the book to her, Aisha quickly grabbed it and handed it to Ara. "Here you are. As they say, the more the merrier!" she said as she helped her pick up the books.

"T-thank you?" Ara said, though slightly confused.

"No problem!" Aisha said, though a part of her was thinking _What the hell am I doing!?_

"Ara, it's time to go!" A man with long black hair said from the parking lot.

"Ah, sorry Onii-chan!" Ara said as she quickly grabbed the rest of the text books.

She quickly turned around for a second as she said "Thank you guys!" and as she turned back towards the parking lot, she nearly tripped, but managed to stay standing this time before rushing to the person she called Onii-chan.

"Onii-chan?" Elsword said, slightly confused.

Aisha sighed as she said "It's a different way to say older brother."

"Yeah, it's used in the Far East in regions like Sander" Chung continued on what she said.

"Ah…I guess I missed that lesson" Elsword said with a small laugh.

Suddenly, Aisha tugged on his sleeve and said "You do realize you might get her involved considering what's going on, right?"

At this moment, Elsword's expression turned serious with a soft smile as he said "Don't worry, I don't plan on it."

Aisha smiled with a slightly red face as she walked towards the gates. She then looked back to him and said "Anyhow, stay safe, alright?"

Elsword gave her a warm smile as he said "Don't worry."

Aisha then proceeded to walk away, little knowing that she and Ara were both thinking the same thing.

_Why is my heart beating so fast?_

* * *

_Downtown, City of Velder, 11:00pm_

Elsword was standing on top of a large building, where the breeze was enough to blow his hair away from his face, and couldn't help but think of what Aisha said to him.

"_Anyhow, stay safe, alright?"_

Elsword shook his head at the thoughts it gave him.

_I already got her dragged into this mess. I don't deserve her. She deserves better. She deserves a normal life_ he thought. Though he couldn't help but think about the feelings he had for her.

"Focus already!" he said to himself. He then closed his eyes took a few deep breaths in and out. Soon enough, he calmed down and looked at the city around him.

The area was filled with a multitude of skyscrapers, office buildings, and apartments all lined up together. And tonight was dark: clouds blocked out the moon and the only lights that were lit were those of the street below. But it made little difference to the darkness that covered the rooftops and filled the alleys.

If anything, Elsword was pretty sure the killer would attack someone again tonight.

Earlier that day, he noticed that every single one of the killings occurred within the Downtown. So he made sure to find the best vantage point he could so he could try to keep an eye on as much of it as possible.

He had been knelling on the edge of the building for an hour, and now that Aisha was finally out of his head for a moment, he focused.

He focused, his senses looking for one thing.

Bloodlust.

His master taught him how to sense it long ago. Not only was it for Elsword's safety, but to teach him how to stop psychos like the one in town right now.

After a few moments, he not only found it, but he heard someone's screams as well.

"Crap!" he said as he quickly jumped off the building and towards the nearest rooftop. He had to move quickly, otherwise the victim would be dead before he got there. He quickly made his way across the rooftops toward where he heard the screaming.

He then quickly jumped down into the pitch black alley the screams came from. He then saw a woman who was probably in her 20s with brown hair come around the corner.

Her right arm and her dress was soaked in blood, coming from a cut on her shoulder. She noticed The Magician and quickly reached out "Please! You have to save me!"

"It's alright, just hurry over here!" he said, reached his hand towards hers.

However, right before their hands touched, a red sword went through her chest, killing her almost instantly. Even Elsword couldn't help but look in terror as the blade was pulled out in moments. The woman fell to the ground, her eyes became a dull blue. She was dead. Elsword couldn't help but be reminded of when he saw his sister's dead body years ago.

"Well, why did you have to go and ruin my meal, brat" a voice came from the dark alley.

Elsword looked towards the voice just as the moon begun to show through the clouds.

The killer was covered in a sort of black and red armor type suit. His hair was silver, the same color as the hair found on the bodies of the victims.

But what surprised Elsword the most was the killer's dark gray skin and the horns protruding from his head. He had only seen something like this once before.

Back when he was in Elder Castle.

"You're a demon, aren't you?" Elsword asked the serial killer.

The man laughed a little as he said "Does it really matter? After all, you're going to die anyway."

Elsword looked at him as he said "And why is that?"

The demon answered his question as he took his stance, a wild smile on his face, as he spoke "For ruining my meal!"

The demon then went for a lunge towards The Magician, but he managed to block and parry the strike, while using his other hand to cast a rune that shone a brilliant orange before it shot out a glowing orange blade.

The demon barely dodged the magic blade as he twisted and with his own free hand, created a dark aura around his arm, turning it into a shadowy claw. Elsword quickly fell back as the demon made a horizontal slash with it, barely missing Elsword's face, slicing the wall next to him instead.

_He doesn't have a defined style, but he's crazy strong! _Elsword thought as he took his fall into a backwards roll.

However, the demon didn't give him much time to regroup as he rushed towards the Magician. Soon enough, the clash of their swords lit up the alley as sparks flew from their blades.

However, Elsword decided to make the first move, parrying away the demon's sword as he clenched his other hand into a fist. However, the demon was just as fast, using his own free claw hand to attack as well. The two fists collided. However, despite the magic explosion Elsword added to his punch, he was knocked back by the demon's shadowy fist into a wall at the end of the alley.

Just as he was about to get himself up, the demon loomed over him, his red blade ready to stab him through.

"Say goodby-"he spoke, until suddenly he held his open hand to his head and winced in pain.

This gave Elsword a chance to quickly shoot another wind blade towards his opponent. While the demon was able to dodge it, the blade managed to graze his side a little.

The demon then jumped towards the rooftops and as he said "You're lucky this time brat!"

Elsword knew he should chase after him, but he knew there was no chance he would be able to catch him the way he was now. He then got up and walked towards the corpse of the girl and after a silent prayer, closed her eyes.

_That guy, he was a demon, but there's something off about him_ he thought before the alley echoed the sounds of police sirens.

By the time the police arrived at the scene, all that was left was the victim and an alley damaged all over the place with marks of a battle.

* * *

**Elsword: Man that fight got intense, I actually thought I was gonna die for a second**

**Aisha: You shouldn't be so reckless idiot!**

**Chung: I heard the screams, but by the time I got there the police already arrived**

**Elsword: It's ok Chung, next time, we'll have a plan!**

**Aisha: Does it involve recklessly charging in?**

**Elsword: …you really think I'm that dumb?**

**Aisha: Just checking!**

**Ara: I'm happy that I was finally introduced to the story! Though is the demon they were talking about m-**

**WVH: Anyhow, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter guys!**

**Ara: Hey, why did you cu-**

**Raven: WAIT A MINUTE! I didn't get any screentime this time!**

**WVH: That's cuz you play a big part in the next few chapters**

**Raven: If you're lying…**

**Ara: Will you guys not cut me off! Isn't the killer o-**

**Rena: Anyhow, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter that slightly deepened Elsword and Aisha's relationship, don't forget to R&amp;R!**

**Ara: Why do I have to be cut off? Q_Q**

**Elsword: Welcome to the club Ara -_- … **


	13. Chapter 13: Relationships

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Turning off the action mode for the moment, but please enjoy the suspense, the love, and the awkward moments!**

**PS. Sorry it took me a while to get this chapter out! But I kinda got a cold…and colds kill my creativity sometimes (cuz coughing of course), but it's just about gone now, so I'll try to get another chapter or two in before the end of August!**

* * *

_Ara's House, Residential District, City Of Velder, 7:15am_

Ara opened her eyes as sunlight that pierced through the window drapes shone on her face. She sat up in her bed and stretched her arm while giving off a soft yawn. The bright orange walls of her room was lined with all sorts of stuffed animals and a single computer desk. After she finished stretching, she laid back down for a moment.

She closed her eyes for a few seconds, the first thing coming to her mind the smile of the redhead she had met the other day.

As she opened her eyes, she let out a soft whisper as she thought out loud:

"Maybe I li-"

But a knock on her door cut her from her thoughts, followed by a voice which said "Ara, I know it's the weekend, but it's time for breakfast!"

She instantly responded "I'll be there in a few minutes!" as she jumped out of bed and to her wardrobe to change out of her pajamas.

A few minutes later, she left her room and went down the hallway outside of it until she entered the well-lit living room and kitchen. Her older brother, Aren, with his long dark hair, looked over to her and said "Morning Ara, sleep well?"

"Yes, and good morning Onii-chan" she said as she sat at the bar like table that separated the kitchen and living room.

After she sat down, Aren spoke "I made your favorite!" as he put a plate in front of her that had her favorite breakfast food. A cinnamon bun. Even she couldn't help but let her mouth water for a second.

A little bit after she started eating, Aren sat down next to her and said to her ear "So…dreaming about someone you like last night?"

Ara almost choked for a second in surprise. After she managed to swallow what was in her mouth, she yelled "I-it's not l-like that!", though the blush on her face was a clear giveaway.

"Oh, so did you meet him yesterday or something?" he said with a smile on his face.

Ara said without thinking as she twiddled her thumbs "Yes, he's so nice an-"until she caught herself. Her face was red and flustered as she yelled at her brother "Stop teasing me Onii-chan!"

Her brother laughed as he realized exactly what was on her mind and said "So, a crush then?"

Ara's face was as red as her crush's hair as she looked down and said "Y-yes."

Aren closed his eyes for a second and smiled as he spoke "Well, you should try talking to him then, learn a little bit more about him before you jump too far."

Ara looked at him as she replied "I guess."

Aren stood up and looked at her with a smile as he spoke "Anyhow, I have to go pick up some groceries, we're getting a little low on-DGH" before he put his hand to his head for a moment.

"Onii-Chan, you forgot to take your medicine today, didn't you?" she responded with a slight bit of worry.

Her brother smiled as he took his hand away from his head as he said "Well, that's because we're out of it, so I need to go buy some more while I'm out. But I should be fine."

Ara looked at him for a moment or two, and then said "Just make sure you stay safe Onii-chan."

Aren replied "Don't worry, I'll be back soon!" as he walked towards the front door of the flat and left the house.

* * *

_Aisha's House, Same Time_

Aisha woke up as usual, the light shining on her eyes as the sun rose from the horizon, though as of more recent, she tended to look on both sides of her to check if Elsword snuck into her bed again.

Fortunately for her, he wasn't there, so she got out of her bed and went to the bathroom next to her room for her normal routine.

But right as she made the turn into the door, she saw the said redhead with his shirt off.

"Hmm? Oh hey Aisha" he said as he looked at her.

Aisha looked away, trying to get the sight of his well-built body out of her mind.

Though it was Elsword's next words that snapped her out of it:

"By the way, nice pjs. Really liking the loose fit."

She looked down for a moment and realized she was still in her pajamas, and of all things, she left the front buttons loose.

"PERVERT!" she yelled as she punched him in the face.

A few minutes later, she walked out of the bathroom with a fresh set of clothes and gave the redhead standing outside a "Hmph!" before she walked down the stairs. When she got to the bottom, she was surprised to see Chung was there as well.

"Hey Aisha! Good morning!" he said as he waved to her.

She walked toward him as she asked him "What are you doing here?"

Elsword answered her question as he said "That's because I called him over."

Aisha was still a little annoyed, but she noticed Elsword's right hand and shoulder were bandaged up. And they were fresh too.

She then asked him "What happened to your right arm?" with a tone of worry in her voice.

Chung picked up on this as he said "Did you try to fight that serial killer or something?"

Elsword let out a sigh and scratched the back of his head as he said "Yeah, it's kinda the reason I called you over here Chung."

He then explained his encounter and fight with the serial killer, from when he was unable to save that woman's life to the moment he retreated.

Aisha and Chung listened, their eyes widening every now and then, but they listened to the whole story.

"…and after that, I got out of there myself. Though what bothers me is how something was off about him. I know he's a demon, but whatever it is, I can't put my finger on it." Elsword said, concluding his story.

Chung was the first to respond as he said "Hmm, it makes sense. I haven't heard of demons that have headaches like the one you described."

Aisha looked in confusion as she asked him "How would you know that?"

Chung replied "It's because at one point, I studied a lot about their anatomy. Because…there's one I have to kill someday."

Elsword looked slightly surprised by this remark as he said "Huh, didn't expect that from you. Why is that?"

Chung looked at them for a moment before closing his eyes as he spoke a set of words he knew he couldn't take back.

"It's because one killed my father."

Tension filled the room for a few moments. Aisha certainly didn't expect him to have a past like that, the shock well written on her face. Elsword on the other hand took a deep breath and breathed out before asking his friend "You want to talk about it?"

Chung looked down for a few moments, and when Aisha looked at him, she could tell.

Chung's eyes were a lot like Elsword's whenever he thought about his past, eyes that held a pain that would never truly fade away.

She then quickly changed the topic back to what they were talking about before as she asked Elsword "So, you said there was something strange about the killer Elsword?"

Elsword looked at her for a second and like before, read her like a book, and knew exactly what she was trying to do. He decided to play along with it.

"Yeah, for some reason, there was something off about his presence. Because I've seen one or two demons before, but their presence was different from this one." He explained as he answered Aisha's question.

Chung suddenly lifted his head as if something caught his attention. He looked like he was about to ask something, but then decided against it as he said "I see. I guess the only thing we can do is look into this more."

"I guess so…" Elsword replied, followed by a short moment of silence afterwards, what Chung said before still on their minds.

_BING!_

The tension in the air suddenly disappeared as Elsword got up suddenly as he said "Ah, food's done!" He ran into the kitchen to open up the oven to reveal a breakfast pizza that was in the oven.

Aisha looked in surprise for a few moments as he cut it up and put the slices on the counter.

"During this entire conversation….you were making breakfast?" she said with astonishment.

Elsword looked at her as he said "What? Breakfast is the most important meal of the day?"

Chung went with Elsword's response as he said "Yeah Aisha, he has a point" before biting down on a slice himself.

Aisha looked like she was about to say something, then her stomach rumbled in hunger.

Elsword laughed as he said "See? I think your stomach agrees!"

She held up her fist for a second, but decided to just take a slice and sit down, with her head down as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

While they ate, one thought kept coming back to Chung's mind:

_Is Elsword….also one of their victims?_

* * *

_Commercial District, City of Velder, 4:30pm_

It was mid-afternoon in the city, the shop-lined streets crowded as usual for this time of day.

Raven was standing next to a small café, dressed in his usual tank top coat and pants.

The crowds tended to slightly avoid him due to his arm, but he was used to it. Even he thought he looked a little intimidating whenever he looked in the mirror.

"Raven!" a familiar voice came from down the street. He looked to see Rena as she walked toward him, carrying a somewhat large bag on her shoulder. She was in her school uniform since she had just gotten out of the weekend meet for the archery club. They had planned it that way yesterday, though she happened to be running a little bit late.

He looked down slightly to see once again, Rena's uniform wasn't big enough to hide her cleavage.

_Oh, right! That elf girl you had over once or twice. The one with the boobs._

Raven shook his head for a moment, trying to get his mind out of the gutter as Rena ran up to him.

As Rena reached where Raven was, she took a moment to catch her breath. After she slowed her breathing, she looked at him as she scratched her head a little as she said "Sorry I'm late! Archery Club went on a little longer than usual."

Raven looked at her with a soft smile as he replied "It's ok, I wasn't here that long", though most of the people nearby knew he had been standing there for the past 20 minutes.

"Anyhow, how about we have something to drink before we do anything else, you seem a little thirsty" he said to the elf.

"Sure!" Rena replied as she wrapped her hands around his normal arm before they walked into the café.

It was a small store with seating at the bar and a few booths next to the windows. While it was small, it was almost always filled with costumers who tended to come there every day.

Soon enough, the two of them sat down at one of the booths, the sun shining through the window and onto the table.

After they placed their order with one of the waitresses, Raven asked the elf "So, how was archery club?"

She lit a small smile as she replied "Oh the usual. Bit of target practice, bit of a lecturing, and so on."

Raven pondered for a moment before speaking "Well, practice makes perfect I guess."

Rena lit out a small giggle as she said "Can't argue with that!"

Before they continued to talk any more, the waitress from before came up to them with a tray in her hand and set down the two drinks: Raven chose a simple black coffee, and Rena an iced latte.

Rena looked at him for a second in surprise as she asked him "Why did you get normal coffee? They have other things you know."

Raven shrugged as he took a sip and replied "I like the coffee here. It's good. That simple."

Rena looked at him for a moment, and after Raven placed down the cup, she looked at the dark brown drink that filled it.

The elf said "Is that so? Well, mind if I try it?" Raven made a simple 'go ahead' gesture in response. She grabbed the cup and took a sip.

At first she thought it was going to be burning hot, but to her surprise, it was just the right temperature. And it tasted much better than the last cup of black coffee she tried. And she normally hated black coffee.

As she put down the cup back next to Raven, she spoke "Wow, now I know what to get next time!" with a smile on her face.

"Mmhmm" he said as he was about to take another sip, but then, Rena held up her latte to him as she said "Now it's your turn to try mine!"

For a moment, Raven couldn't help but think how she may have thought of this beforehand, but smiled anyway at the gesture and decided to do just as Rena did with his drink.

It was delicious.

* * *

After finishing their drinks, the two of them ended up roaming through the district.

Rena had Raven judge some of the clothing styles she tried on at the clothing store, they played for a bit at the local arcade, though they had to leave when Raven accidentally broke one of the machine's buttons with his claw; and they wandered down the streets, looking at all of the merchandise the stores had to offer.

As Rena walked next to him, he couldn't help but smile as he thought:

_Maybe my luck is finally turning around for me again_

However, as they walked down the street, they passed an alley that came before an intersection.

As they walked toward the intersection, a pair of red eyes stared at them from behind at the edge of that alley.

And the face that the red eyes belonged to made a smile that reeked of blood-thirst.

* * *

**Rena and Raven: *Slightly blushing because they just realized they did indirect kissing***

**Aisha: So wait, do those red eyes belong to who I think they do?**

**WVH: If you mean the killer, yes**

**Aisha: Let me guess…this is all set up to drag them into Elsword's night job, isn't it?**

**WVH: Ok, that's enough spoiling**

**Aisha: And I bet the killer is actual-**

**WVH: *puts duck tape on Aisha's mouth* No. More. Spoilers. k'?**

**Elsword: Well besides that though, I guess me and Chung are gonna have to tell each other our pasts sooner or later, right?**

**WVH: WILL YOU GUYS QUIT IT WITH THE SPOILERS!?**

**Ran: Did someone call for me?**

**Add: kukukuk, did someone say spoilers? Cuz all I know is I'm in the main arc after this one**

**WVH: …I'm so done…**

**Ara: Well, anyhow, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone *goes to comfort the moping WVH* **


	14. Chapter 14: Temper

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**For those who hated the mushy stuff last chapter, prepare for a chapter with a LOT of action!**

* * *

_Commercial District, City Of Velder, 7:45pm_

The demon looked out his new prey outside the alleyway he was standing in. One had black and white spikey hair and what seemed to be some robotic arm, and a girl with greenish-blonde hair next to him.

The killer smiled with glee as he thought _I bet she would look great in agony…maybe I'll kill her little boyfriend first…and then let her run a bit…just to run into the edge of my blade_.

However, just as he was about to summon his demon claw so he could drag them in, suddenly a girl with purple hair in a white cloak and another girl with silver hair wearing a gothic sort of dress walked towards the couple and seemed to start chatting with them.

He then deactivated his claw as he thought _Tch. A group? Well that's annoying. I can only grab up to three at a time._

He then started to consider the choices laid out before him, whether to look for someone else or to just kill them all. But then, he looked again and noticed something that could be bad for him.

The one with purple hair looked right towards where he was hiding, as if though sensing his presence.

_CRAP! _He thought as he quickly hid behind the corner. After catching his breath for a moment, he looked out the corner to see the group continue their walk down the street.

_That girl…she knows I'm here…and is trying to protect them..._he thought. And more importantly, she had her hand in her pocket. She was likely holding a cell phone, ready to quickly dial the police and maybe even get a picture.

But then, a smile formed on his face. He looked at them again, his face reeking of bloody insanity.

_This'll be fun…will they get out what I look like first? Or will I kill them all first? _He thought, the idea of such a gamble making him quiver in excitement.

He then licked his lips as he quickly began to follow them from the shadows.

* * *

"You okay Aisha?" Rena asked the purplette, who seemed to be looking off into the distance behind them every now and then.

"O-oh, I'm fine! Don't worry about me!" Aisha replied. At first, Rena didn't seem to buy it, but then she just gave a shrug and continued to talk to Eve and Raven.

Aisha did not expect this sort of situation to happen today. She was hoping that whoever the serial killer was would not even come close to her friends.

She had been helping Eve shop for new clothing. Apparently, she didn't understand fashion well and wanted Aisha to help her pick through clothes. Aisha tried to suggest that Elsword help, but she had simply replied with "Last time he did…I ended up slapping him into a wall for attempting to look at me between changing."

And so, she ended up going through some of the clothing stores with Eve. However, as they were walking down the street, Aisha suddenly felt something sinister. Something dark.

Something bloodthirsty.

She looked around and saw a figure hiding in the shadows. The only things she could see at all were his long silver hair and red eyes. As soon as she saw the eyes though, she saw exactly what they were looking at.

Her friend Rena and Rena's boyfriend Raven.

She then decided to quickly join them while at the same time, opening her phone in her pocket, trying to text to Elsword as fast as she could.

And so, as they were walking down the street, she couldn't help but look back every now and then. The presence felt like as if though someone had a knife held at her throat.

She finally finished the text and sent it to Rune. The message said

"Killer is stalking us. Please hurry b4 he attacks"

She hoped to the Lady El that he would get here on time, because she had no idea if this ploy she made would work.

Soon enough, they entered what seemed to be a small plaza. But as Aisha looked around, she got worried. Compared to the street they left behind them, the plaza was almost empty.

She began to panic slightly as she said "Hey guys, we should head back."

Rena stopped and looked back at her as she responded "Why? We're going to hit the ice cream store and it's this way."

Aisha quickly replied while slightly stuttering "W-well, I know this one shoppe back where we came from, they make much bet-"

However, she suddenly went quiet.

She couldn't sense the demon's presence from behind them anymore.

_Where did he go!? _She thought, right before turning around.

_CLANG!_

As she turned around, she saw the killer. His hair was silver, his eyes red, and his skin a dark grey, just as Elsword described him.

But to her greater surprise, a small floating drone had blocked his blade from making its deadly arc.

Suddenly, the demon jumped back, also surprised at this turn of events.

"I suggest you give up, whoever you are. I sensed you following us this whole time." Eve said as she walked up next to Aisha, the drone landing on her hand as she held it up.

_She knew? But how?_ Aisha thought as she stared at her in surprise. But then she remembered Eve was not only a nasod, but due to the events Elsword described to her, she was almost emotionless, so she could easily notice the killer without even changing the look on her face.

The killer looked at them for a moment, and then began to laugh uncontrollably, surprising the group, even Eve couldn't help but be slightly disturbed by this.

The killer looked at them with wild eyes and a twisted smile as he said "This is PERFECT! I've always wanted my prey to put up some kind of fight! And here it is!"

Aisha couldn't help but quickly summon her staff out of instinct, her mind going a mile a minute because of the bloodlust the killer radiated. Part of her was afraid, part of her was angry, and part of her was trying to think how to fight against the man, or demon, before them.

Suddenly, the killer lunged towards them at extreme speed, her eyes barely keeping up with the movement. His attack started as a lunge, but then quickly turned into a horizontal slash.

The group managed to dodge the attack, but the surrounding landscape didn't. The nearby lampposts were cut in two, their top halves falling to the ground, and the tree in the center that was some distance away from his blade's arc had been marked with a huge slash mark.

_You gotta be kidding!_ Aisha thought as she got herself back up. Elsword told her how much strength the killer had behind his blade, but she certainly didn't expect this.

She looked around to see her comrades. Rena and Raven were over towards the tree, they seemed to be fine. But Eve was over near the lampposts, she looked slightly dazed, and holding the side of her head. Aisha could only assume she had been hit by one of the fallen lampposts.

She then quickly raised her staff and pointed it at the demon, who was now running towards Eve, and shot a lightning bolt.

However, the demon dodged the attack, causing Aisha to panic _How did he dodge that!?_ But then she noticed the demon closing in on the still recovering Eve.

"EVE!" Aisha yelled across the plaza, warning her of the approaching attack.

Just when it seemed that Eve would become the killer's next victim, a volley of arrows went straight towards his face, leaving him no choice but to dodge and parry the shots.

The one who had shot the volley was Rena, and much to Aisha's surprise, Rena looked serious for once. The cheery, giggly elf she knew looked like a mature, strong woman for once.

"Listen! If we work together, we should be able to beat this guy! You with me?" she spoke to the group.

And no other words needed to be said, all three of the others understood what needed to be done.

Soon enough, Rena and Eve started to fire upon the demon once again, the volley of arrows and lasers forcing the demon to dodge and parry each and every one of the shots. However, he was caught off guard as Raven dashed from all the way across the street to right next to the demon, his robotic fist red hot with energy.

Raven threw his fist right into the demon's stomach, causing him to lose his breath for a moment. But it wasn't enough. The demon was not even thrown back, and he had recovered almost instantaneously, his blade ready to make an arc right at Raven's face.

But then to the killer's surprise, Raven dodged the attack by a hair and dashed right out of his range.

What was even more to the killer's surprise however, was the actual reason why Raven retreated. By the time he saw the attack, a magic meteor was already right in front of his face.

"Meteor Shower!" Aisha yelled as the meteors fell where the demon was standing, the attack making bright red explosions as the meteors hit their target and the ground.

Soon enough, the meteors stopped falling, leaving the plaza filled with smoke and dust.

Raven coughed a little bit as got up and asked Aisha "Did we get him?"

But however, his question was answered as the dust settled to reveal two shadowy claws that made some sort of barrier over the demon's head. Other than a few scratches, he seemed almost completely unscathed.

"Have to say, I didn't expect that…but did you even think you could win?" he said with a malicious grin on his face. Raven and Aisha could only look in shock.

Suddenly, Rena and Eve jumped out of the cloud of smoke behind the demon, attempting a surprise attack.

But it didn't work. The demon easily tossed Eve aside with his claw. Rena however, was stabbed in her stomach.

"EVE! RENA!" Aisha yelled in dismay.

"RENAA!" Raven yelled as he quickly ran towards the scene. The demon smiled as he tossed the elf towards Raven, as if enjoying his torment with a sick sense of humor.

He was barely able to catch her, and both of them fell to the ground.

"Rena! Are you alright!? Talk to me!" He yelled, clearly in agony.

"R-Raven…I'll be...f-fine." She spoke, her voice soft. She was clearly losing consciousness.

The demon began walking towards them as he said "I made sure to miss her vitals…I think it would be so much more fitting if you two die together like the trash you are."

Aisha looked at him with a death stare as she held up Eve. She spoke "What gives you the right to say that, you monster!"

The demon looked at her and laughed as he said "Does it look like I care about your opinion? Because I honestly don't!"

As Rena's breathing slowed, she looked at Raven and said "Y-you…need to…run…"

Raven retorted "I'm not leaving here without you!" as tears rained down from his eyes.

Rena made a soft smile as she said "I love…you…Raven…"

She then lost consciousness. Raven couldn't help but let tears fall down his face.

"Oh how cute. Now go with her to the afterlife!" the demon announced as he raised his blade.

"RAVEN!" Aisha yelled from across the way.

However, just when the sword was about to slice into his skull, his nasod arm grabbed the blade and stopped it in its tracks.

"What!?" the demon said in surprise.

"Kill…" Raven muttered, his face facing downwards.

The demon made a "tch" as he tried to pull the sword away to no avail.

"I will…kill you…" Raven spoke, his grip on the sword becoming even tighter. The sword began to crack.

"What the!?" the demon said, his eyes open in shock.

"I WILL KILL YOU!" Raven yelled as he broke the blade with his claw, the shards scattered across the plaza floor.

Before the demon could even react, Raven's fist went right into his face, and unlike before, this time he was sent flying back.

"WHY YOU!" the demon said as he tried to summon his shadowy claw again, but Raven was faster throwing a multitude of punches into the demon's body. And this time, the demon coughed up blood right before Raven made one last punch that sent the demon flying right into one of the nearby stone wall, which partially collapsed on impact.

The demonic murderer tried to stand up, but Raven quickly grabbed him by the collar, and started punching him with his claw arm, beating the demon's face until it was bloody.

And from the sidelines, Aisha watched the fight, terrified at Raven's sudden change. He wasn't that cool and calm person now, but a beast of rage and war.

"RAVEN! THAT'S ENOUGH, YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS!" Aisha yelled, but Raven kept beating down the killer as if her voice didn't reach him.

He then pulled his fist back once more, and energy filled it to the point it glowed a deep orange. And the demon couldn't help but look in fear at the man turned animal.

"RAAAVEEEN!" Aisha yelled to no avail as Raven began to move his fist forward.

"R-Raven…"

His fist stopped only an inch from the demon's face. He looked around to see Rena, while unconscious, muttering his name.

"Rav…en" she muttered once more.

He dropped the demon as his fist lost its glow. However, at the same time, he began to lose consciousness.

"Rena…" he said as he fell to the floor.

The demon caught his breath as he tried to compose himself. He then got himself up, and then kicked Raven in the gut.

He continued hitting him in the gut as he yelled "HOW DARE YOU! I AM THE DEMON EARL RAN! HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO-"

But however, a sudden voice yelling out stopped him in his tracks.

"AISHA! WHERE ARE YOU!?" the voice yelled.

Aisha smiled as she knew exactly who it was.

However, the demon let out a "Tch", as he also knew who it was.

Soon enough, The Magician appeared on a rooftop on the edge of the plaza. He surveyed the battlefield to see what had happened.

Raven and Rena were down on the ground, unconscious, and Aisha was holding Eve over towards the side. While he was mad to know his friends were hurt, he couldn't help but let out a breath of relief.

His friends survived.

He jumped down from the rooftop and landed on the ground. He then looked at the demon and said "You're not getting away this time you bastard."

The silver-haired demon looked at him as he made a small laugh. He then asked "And why is that?"

"Because, there's more than one of us." A voice spoke from the rooftop behind the demon.

Ran looked around to see a figure cloaked in white, and aiming a cannon right towards him.

Ran let out a "Tch" as he realized that unlike the four he fought earlier, these two were on another level.

"Surrender now, or face the consequences" Elsword said, holding up his blunt sword, ready to attack.

Ran then let out a round of laughter. It was clear to the rest of the group he was insane.

"You really think you can catch me!?" he said as his shadowy claws appeared once more. "THEN GO AHEAD AND TRY!" he yelled as he punched the ground, shattering the floor below him.

"AISHA! EVE! HOLD ON!" the Magician yelled as he quickly grabbed her and Eve and made for a jump up to the rooftops. Meanwhile, the Deadly Chaser quickly grabbed the other two before the whole plaza collapsed.

As the dust settled, Elsword looked at the remains of the plaza, revealing the sewers that were once hidden beneath them.

"Well…he's smarter than he looks I guess…" he said in a serious tone. He then let out let another breath of relief before he looked towards Aisha and Eve. He said to them "At least we all managed to get out of this alive."

Aisha let out a small smile as she said "Yeah", though it was clear she was still worried about Raven and Rena, who were currently being looked at by Chung.

After a moment of silence, Eve suddenly spoke "…I've been meaning to ask to, why are you two wearing such a ridiculous outfits, Elsword and Chung?"

For a moment, it seemed they were going to answer her before they both did a sudden double take. Even Aisha was surprised for a few moments.

Soon enough, the duo tried to explain themselves, since they knew Eve was literally a lie detector, and just watching the spectacle made Aisha laugh as the sun fell towards the horizon.

They deserved a respite like this. They all made it out alive. That's what mattered to her.

* * *

_Residential District, City of Velder, 9:00pm_

"I underestimated that brat" Ran said as he walked across the moonlit rooftops as stealthily as he could. He was beaten and broken, his sword shattered, forced to escape through the sewers, and lost his chance at his chosen prey.

_It's all because of that Raven brat…if he wasn't there…I would have killed them all_ he thought as he landed on the next rooftop.

Suddenly, his head began to throb. He knew what was coming next.

_Damn it, I used too much energy on those fools…_ he thought as he raised his head, revealing his black skin starting to change color.

He quickly jumped down onto the next roof. The roof belonged to a flat, which he knew as his home, or the home of his other side.

Slightly limping, he made his way down to the ground. And as quietly as possible, entered the building and made his way towards his room.

He then closed the door behind him before muttering "Damn it…if it wasn't for you…this would be so much easier for me…"

He then fell onto the bed. Before suddenly, his horns and the armor he was wearing crumbled away into the air. Then, his hair darkened into a jet black, and his skin a pale tone.

However, little did Ran know he didn't close the door fully. And a pair of orange eyes stared into her older brother's room, wide open in fear of what she had just seen.

Ran had transformed from a demon general into Ara's older brother Aren right before her very eyes.

* * *

**Aisha: See? I called it! Not only is the killer Ran/Aren, but now everyone else is getting dragged into this! *thinks she's a know it all***

**Eve: Aisha, I think everyone knew this was going to happen sooner or later.**

**Aisha: Bu-**

**Eve: With so many characters, they have to become somehow involved with the plot. It's classic action type fanfiction writing practice.**

**WVH: Well, Aisha just got owned.**

**Elsword: Anyhow, I didn't expect the transformation and more importantly, that 'other side' thing. So what? Is he bipolar but his light side doesn't know about it or something?**

**WVH: …*pulls out the duct tape***

**Elsword: …well, I thought Raven snapping was pretty interesting…DAH!*runs from WVH***

**Chung: Hey, now that I think about it, didn't they describe Edan doing something similar?**

**WVH: WHAT IS IT WITH YOU GUYS AND SPOILERS!?**

**Add: kekekek, because we like spoilers**

**WVH: WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE!?**

**Ara: Well, I guess this is the end of the chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it! And don't forget to R&amp;R! *tries to stop WVH from making Elsword, Chung, and Add duct tape mummies, only to trip and end up one herself***

**WVH: Oops...sorry Ara! I'll get you out of that!**


	15. Chapter 15 & 16: Truth

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**And I am finally back after over week off! Well, a week off from working on this to work on other stuff, but besides that, I am finally back to giving you guys some more of this saga! And just to warn you guys, this chapter is a little bit of a long one (since I have to give you guys some reward for your patience. Think of it as a double or triple chapter.)!**

* * *

_Ara's House, City of Velder, 9:15 pm_

Ara couldn't help but have her eyes wide open as she looked in her brother's room in shock.

Her brother had just transformed from a terrifying demonic form with black skin and silver hair that was protruded by two horns back into his normal state.

After taking a few moments, she tried to calm herself while trying to think about what she just saw.

_I must be dreaming! There's no way Aren is somehow a demon!_ she thought.

She then closed her eyes for a few seconds, thinking when she opened them, Aren would be all the way in his bed instead of being bent over on the side of it. But as she opened her eyes, she saw her older brother still in the same spot, in a deep sleep, right where he collapsed as his transformation disappeared.

_I am dreaming, right? _She asked herself in thought. She then decided to pinch herself on the cheek until she couldn't stand the pain anymore. But again, he was still in the same spot.

_You aren't dreaming child _a feminine voice spoke in her head.

"Eun…is this really real?" she seemed to say to herself.

_I'm afraid so, I had a feeling something was off about him when he returned_ the voice spoke again to the young woman, who seemed to have a hard time maintaining her composure.

_Calm down child, it isn't as if though Aren is a full demon or anything like that, but I'm guessing it's more like he somehow has two souls_ the feminine voice explained.

Suddenly, it came to her. Ara began to cry as she muttered "It's my fault...it's all my fault…"

The voice tried to comfort her, but it knew exactly what the girl was talking about, and even it couldn't help but feel slightly guilty for what the girl's brother had become.

* * *

In Ara's home in Fahrmann, every few centuries a child was born with the ability to commune with their guardian and control its power. The name of their guardian was Eun, the Millennium Fox. Ara was one of the very few born with this gift, and considering her father was one of the members of the town's high council to begin with, knowledge of her abilities became commonly known throughout her mountain village. Many respected the power of their guardian in the village, who resided in the hairpin she now wore on the back of her head. Her childhood was a truly peaceful one.

That is, until a group of men kidnapped her from her own home five and a half years ago.

A fire had started out of nowhere in multiple parts of the village. But in truth, it was merely a distraction. Only a few minutes after her brother and father left to help evacuate the citizens from the fire spread out of control, a group of men suddenly appeared in the house, she tried to resist them, but they just laughed at her petty child punches and threw her into a bag.

Her mother tried to help her apparently, as she remembered hearing one of the men yell out "GAAAH! MY ARM! WHY YOU HAG!" before she heard a gunshot, which Ara knew wasn't from her mother. She tried to get out of the bag as she screamed for her mother, but it was no use as they carried her away. Deep down that day, she knew her mother was dead.

After that, she had been forced into a cage that had been covered by some sort of canopy. From what she guessed, they were somewhere in the desert beyond the mountains, as she had been taught the area's topography as a part of her normal studies.

However, it was after two days of being stuck in that infernal cage, in the middle of night, that her brother came to save her.

At first, she felt happy for the first time in days since her kidnapping, but after looking at his face and a little bit of Eun's advice, she realized that he was forced to kill the men that held her captive.

However, as they made their trek back towards the village, a large army of men clothed similarly to the ones who kidnapped her in the first place attacked them not long after they made camp.

Many of their men fell to her brother's blade, but their numbers were too much. Before long, he knelled on one knee, completely worn out.

The enemy took the opportunity to grab Ara, who kicked and screamed out for her brother as she was dragged away.

But then, he said a set of words that would forever be etched into her mind.

"_Please don't take her, she's just a child…take me instead…"_

While Ara had the ability to commune and use the abilities of Eun, Aren had his own unique ability. He was born during a solar eclipse. Supposedly, those born in those circumstances gained extraordinary fighting abilities at night when the sun was no longer in the sky. Many of these people who happened to be participate in wars had become well known in history, being compared to the fighting force of 100 men many times.

As Ara was being dragged away, a man in a green cloak that wore a mask ordered them to halt. While the man's face was covered with a demon like mask, she could tell the man was probably in his middle ages, considering the grey hair that topped his head.

Just as it seemed everything was going to be okay thanks to this man, the soldiers suddenly went over to Aren and began tying him up. She tried to run to him, but the man who moments ago seemed to be their savior slapped her across the face with the back of his hand. He then ordered his men to tie her up in such a way she'd be able to untie herself before long.

Aren tried to convince them otherwise, but the man simply laughed as he told him that it was only a few miles away from a nearby town, as if assuring him that she'd survive as a taunt to him.

As they walked away, Ara couldn't help but cry and scream for her brother as he was carried away by the army, who simply smiled as if to say 'I'm sorry, but at least you're safe'.

She sat in that desert, crying for several hours before Eun managed to calm her down. With Eun's guidance, she managed to make it to the town of Sander, where the people of her village had found refuge after the fire took their homes away. She went into her father's arms crying that night, because she had not only lost her mother, but her brother as well.

Afterwards, she and her father lived as refugees in the oasis village of Sander for about a year, trying to make money to once again have a proper home. However, not long after they crawled out of the rut of the refugee district however, her father became ill, and before long, Ara had lost what seemed to be the last of her family. Eun ended up becoming the only person left that she saw as family.

After that, Eun had to help guide her for about a year, helping her to survive the environment she found herself in. Eventually, after saving the life of a passerby who happened to be a middle class merchant, she ended up as a part of their family for about 2 and a half years, and she was even able to go to a public school again.

But despite the gleam of hope she had gained, she couldn't help but cry at night for her mother, her father, and her brother.

However, her brother suddenly came to her doorstep 2 years ago. She couldn't help but cry tears of joy as he held her in his arms. It was as if though her brother came back from the dead.

He told her that the people who held him captive did experiments on him and many others. However, it all went to a grinding halt about after being trapped in there for a year after one the lab was raided by a single man. He then journeyed with the group of ex-test subjects led by the man who ended their nightmare for a short time as he helped them find their homes and relatives. He bid farewell to the group in the Velder harbor, taking a ship back to his home continent. After that, he made his way into Sander, at first looking for the refugee district until discovering his little sister had been adopted.

Her new family accepted her brother with open arms, allowing him to live with them until Aren was old enough to be her legal guardian. At that time, all it seemed he gained from his trials was occansial migraines, however, after a year or so had passed, the migraines progressively became worse. After consulting a doctor, the two decided to head to Velder, which was much more advanced in medicine at the time. And so, they came to this city, in search for not only a new cure, but also for a new start.

* * *

Ara, now back in her bedroom continued to cry as she muttered "If it wasn't for me…he wouldn't be-"

However, Eun cut her off as she spoke in her mind _No, the burden is mine…it was my fault you gained this ability, so it is my fault that this came to pass. So please don't blame yourself._

Ara replied "No…it's not your fault…it's both of ours…and the people who took him back then" as she wiped away her tears.

_Perhaps_ Eun spoke, slightly cheered up from Ara's thoughts. It made her feel surer.

"But what should we do? If we tell the police, they'll just take him away again." She spoke, asking Eun for advice.

The guardian took a moment to think, and came up with an idea.

_Maybe we should ask that boy you met before_ Eun replied.

Ara retorted back "I don't want to get him hurt! He's just a normal person!"

Eun had anticipated her reaction as she spoke _No. There is an aura about him. Different from that of an average human. Something I have not felt in a long time._

Ara opened her eyes, surprised at Eun's words.

"What does that mean?" Ara asked the fox spirit.

But the spirit simply replied back _Just go to sleep. The answers will come to you in due time._

Ara hated it when Eun kept things from her, but considering the situation, she knew Eun was right. But as she fell back into slumber, she couldn't help but think:

_Is there something special about Elsword? Is he some kind of hero? I wish Eun would just tell me…_

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 12:30 pm_

Ara looked around the cafeteria, trying to search for the boy she had become interested in, but he was nowhere to be seen in the cafeteria.

Ara let out a sigh as she sat down at a table near the cafeteria window. It was hard enough putting up a front so Aren wouldn't notice how worried she was during breakfast, and now she had to find Elsword so she could talk with him privately. She tried to do it in class earlier, but the second she finally got the courage to do so, she was called upon by the teacher to read a part of the textbook, and ended up getting embarrassed after she read the wrong paragraph.

She didn't know why Eun told her she should ask Elsword to help her with her problem. She honestly didn't want to get him involved, feeling it would only end up bad for him. But she after asking around a bit in the hallways, she couldn't help but become curious.

People said he was kind of lazy when it came to school, but he was a genius in a way. He had never gotten below a C in anything. But what really caught her attention was that he was also at one point a student who transferred in. Just like her.

But what was more to her surprise was that just about no one really knew where he lived. Save for a few people who heard that he used to live in an apartment that a few weeks ago was blown up.

_Maybe there is something special about him_ she thought as she took a bite of her sandwich.

She closed her eyes and then pictured him for a moment, thinking of the boy who helped her on the first day of school. She couldn't help but blush slightly as she thought about the smile he had on his face.

_Snap out of it! _she thought as she shook her head, trying to get herself out of her daydreams and back to focusing on the matter at hand.

Just as she opened her eyes, she caught a glimpse of his red hair over in the hallway. She almost choked in surprise, quickly grabbing her drink to help the sandwich down the rest of the way to her stomach. After calming herself for a moment, she thought _Did he eat on the roof or something?_

She then quickly ate the rest of her food, without another clumsy accident, and went out to the hall, hoping to get a word with him.

However, just as she caught up with him, she felt her foot step on something. And then slip.

"KYAAH!" she yelled as she tripped almost face first onto the floor.

However, Elsword caught her mid fall, his hands supporting her shoulders.

"You okay Ara?" he said as he began to lift her up.

She couldn't help but blush as she looked at his face. She then quickly picked herself up the rest of the way as she replied "I-I'm fine!"

Elsword let out a soft smile as he said "Well, watch your step next time, don't need you getting hurt over a pudding cup now do we?"

Ara looked confused for a second, but then looked back to see the object she had tripped on was a (now crushed) pudding cup, its contents now on the floor and also on the sole of her shoe.

"Eheeheheheh, I'm sorry" she said. She then looked at him again, as if though trying to understand Eun's advice.

_He's just a normal boy, isn't he?_ She thought to herself.

Suddenly, Elsword asked her "So, I was wondering, you make any new friends?"

Ara was slightly surprised the question, but she replied "Um, a few, but not many…"

Elsword put his finger on his chin and then snapped his fingers "How about you join me and my friends when we go to the mall later!?"

"Wait, really?" Ara replied, once again surprised by the boy.

"Yeah. I know it's kinda hard making new friends and all. Trust me, I had to go through it once too." He said as he scratched the back of his head.

Chung then walked into the conversation, saying with a mischievous grin "Well, he first tried dating random girls in the school, and ended up mistaking me for a girl at one point. But after that, he became my buddy."

Elsword facepalmed himself as he replied "Please don't remind me about that…" the look on his face one of regretting the time he did what Chung just told Ara.

Ara couldn't help but laugh a little. They were both so lively as they joked around.

Then, the elf gave Ara a warm smile as she said "My name's Rena. And I think it would be great if you joined us. They do say the more the merrier, right?"

Ara looked at Rena, her remark and smile warmed up Ara's heart as she replied "Sure!"

Suddenly, the purplette, Aisha, interrupted them from down the hall.

"C'mon guys! We're gonna be late for class!"

The group then looked back and forth down the halls. Almost everyone had already left them. And as they looked at the clock, they realized they had less than two minutes to get to class.

"CRAP CRAP CRAP!" Elsword yelled as they all ran down the hall towards the classroom.

As they ran, Ara had a hard time keeping up the pace, being in the back of the group.

However, as they ran down the hall, she couldn't help but catch a glimpse of Elsword's face as he took a short glance back at her. And this time, his eyes looked much older. However, she then nearly tripped due to the distraction, so she turned her focus back on running to their next class.

* * *

_Velder City Mall, City of Velder, 4:30 pm_

The mall was located in the center of the commercial district, the heart of commerce in the area. The mall featured a variety of wares and services inside its walls, shops lining the entire inside of the five glass roofed domes that had been made in an 'x' shape when looked at from above. Even outside, multiple stalls stood neck and neck to each other, filled with merchants in hopes of being noticed in order to sell their wares.

Inside, in the middle section of the mall, Elsword took a sip of his drink and looked at the raven haired girl that sat at the other table, thinking _She's worried about something…but what?_

"Elsword!"

Elsword suddenly snapped out of it and turned toward Chung as he replied "What?"

He then noticed that a waitress was standing next to him, looking slightly impatient as she started tapping her pen to the clipboard she held.

"Ah, sorry about that! I'll have a cheeseburger" he said to the waitress, who just simply shrugged and wrote down the order before she walked away to the kitchen.

Elsword let out a sigh. He really needed to pay attention to his surroundings.

After all, it was one of the many lessons his sensei gave him. He then shuddered for a second as he thought _If he was here though…._ as he swallowed with a gulp.

"You seem kinda distracted today bro." Chung spoke, catching Elsword's attention.

"Yeah, I guess I am" he said before he took another drink from the disposable cup in front of him.

"And will you two explain to me what's going on?" Raven asked the two of them. He was sitting to the right of Elsword, his scars almost completely gone from the other day.

"I told you we found you guys at the plaza right as that demon guy made a break for it when he saw the Magician, and we carried you back to get fixed up at Aisha's house" Elsword replied with a half lie.

Raven looked at him for a moment, but then shrugged. "Fine, I'll accept that story, for now. And what's got you looking at Ara so much?" he spoke.

Elsword's eyes became a little more serious for a moment as he answered with "Something is troubling her."

Raven looked at him for a second, and then looked over towards Ara, and then he looked back to Elsword as he spoke "Yeah, I think you're right."

Elsword and Chung looked at him slightly surprised, which made Raven raise his one of his eyebrows as he said "What? I used to see people like that a lot"

Chung then asked him "And why is that?"

Raven took a drink of his own soda before saying "Well, my brother is the police chief you know."

It was a good thing Raven wasn't looking at their faces the moment he said that. Both of them for a short moment had shock and nervousness on their faces, considering how both of them had essentially broken so many laws in their lines of work.

As Raven opened his eyes though, they quickly recovered, with Elsword responding "Well, isn't that neat. Didn't take you for a person who knew the police so well. Right Chung?"

"Yeah, heheheheh" the blonde replied, still slightly nervous. Then he exclaimed "Oh look! Our food is here!" as the waitress came back with their meals.

Raven had a feeling he wouldn't get any more out of them, so he simply shrugged as the waitress handed him his hamburger.

However, right before Elsword could get the chance to take a bite from his burger, Rena propped herself on his shoulder before asking "So, what's taking you guys so long?"

"Well, we have Mr. Spaced out over here" Chung said before pointing his finger at the red head.

"Really Chung? Really?" Elsword replied with a tone of annoyance.

Eve tried to do a giggle to his joke, but it didn't come out very well, causing Aisha and Ara to giggle a little.

Rena lit up a soft smile as she announced "Well, while you guys finish eating, we're gonna go look at…girly clothes" before pointing to the female underwear store that was across the way.

All three of the boys couldn't help but blush slightly, while Elsword simply replied "Well, you ladies have fun then."

"Well, see you in a bit!" Rena said as they began walking over.

However, before they got the chance to leave, Elsword shouted "Don't worry, I won't try to peek or anything!"

His joke hit right on target as Aisha yelled "SHUT UP ELDORK! AND DON'T YOU DARE TRY IT!" before walking away slightly annoyed.

However, he looked towards Ara and once again saw that worried look in her eyes. After looking at her for a second, she turned around, noticing his observant gaze. However, after the rest of the girls told her to hurry up, she turned away before returning to follow the girls.

But in that split second, Elsword got a much better idea of what was on her mind.

_She wants to tell me something…but what?_ He thought, trying to think of the possibilities.

But before he got any further chance, Chung said "Well, you gonna eat that? Or can I call dibs?"

"No way, this is mine!" he said before taking a bite out of his food.

* * *

_Somewhere nearby in the mall…_

Aren looked around the mall, surprised by its grandeur. It was certainly bigger than he expected, considering the only large shopping area he had seen beforehand was a few of the Velder streets and the bazaar in Sander. But this place, considering its multiple stories, was definitely took the cake.

He needed to pick up some textbooks the school had ordered for his class that he was going to use the next day. Apparently, the school ran one of the bookstores in the mall, and the textbooks had been sent there by mistake. After being told about this earlier that day, he told them that he could pick them up himself, feeling that it would be more efficient that way.

He walked over to the wall near the entrance which held a map of the mall, the background white and the sections marked in different colors.

"Now let's see…" he said to himself as he looked at the map. He first found the marker that represented his location as he said "So I'm here…and the bookstore is.." before looking at the map and the legend below for a few moments before finding his destination.

"Right here!" he said as he pointed at the bookstore, which was apparently in the dome on the opposite side.

"Well, might as well get some exercise" Aren said to himself before he began walking through the dome.

He looked around as he walked, seeing a variety of stores wherever he looked. Electronics, toys, clothing, antiques, food, and much more lined the windows that he walked past. He couldn't help but be reminded of the bazaar back in Sander, and then smiled for a moment.

_At least this is air conditioned_ he thought, remembering some of the many times he had to walk through the bazaar, and most people had their wares out during the day, when the sun literally turned the place into a frying pan or oven.

He then entered the center dome, which was much larger than the others from what he saw on the map, being the center or heart of the mall. He looked up at the glass ceiling, amazed by the architecture.

Hwoever, as his head went down, he noticed a group of three boys sitting at a table in the food court on the second floor.

He recognized two of them, the redhead with braids and the long haired blonde as two of the students in one of his classes, but the last one had spikey black hair with a bit of white on the side.

As he looked at them, his head suddenly began to ache immensely. The pain causing him to try and cradle his head.

_Why now!? _He thought as he tried to endure the headache. He then suddenly remembered he had brought some of his medication with him in his pocket, and now would be a good time to take it.

Aren quickly ran over to the nearest bathroom, while using one of his hands to look for the medication in his pocket. He found it right as he got to the sink. However, the pain suddenly became worse, causing him to drop the pill into the sink.

And then, his sight went to black.

After a few moments, the figure that used to be Aren looked at the mirror.

Ran was awake. And he only one thing on his mind.

Payback.

* * *

_In the female clothing store…_

Ara looked at herself in the mirror in the small stall she was in. She was wearing a white tank top with a pair of blue jeans.

_That looks pretty good_ Eun spoke to Ara.

They seemed to fit her well, but she looked slightly uncomfortable before she decided to take the top off and put it in the pile of clothes she wouldn't buy.

"Why do these have to be so big?" she muttered as she looked down at her cleavage. Ever since her bust suddenly blossomed, she had a hard time finding clothes that didn't constrain her.

"Oh come on, it isn't that bad."

Ara did a slightly clumsy turn as she came to see Rena in front of the door, wearing the same, though slightly larger, tank top and jeans combination Ara had on only moments ago.

"RENA! Don't scare me like that!" Ara squeaked as she tried to calm down.

Rena did a small laugh as she replied "Sorry, I guess Aisha wasn't kidding when she said I tend to sneak up on people."

Ara giggled slightly before looking at Rena. While she was completely uncomfortable in the outfit, Rena seemed perfectly fine. And Ara was certain they were around the same bust size.

Ara asked Rena "What size is that? I think the one I got is too small…" as she started to twiddle her fingers.

Rena smiled as she said "Ah, I get it, never really had help clothes shopping before, have you?"

Ara's blushing face was enough to say Rena hit the bullseye.

Rena walked over to the pile of clothes Ara didn't want and looked at the sizes.

"Ah, here's your problem! You need to get something slightly bigger" she said as she put down the tank top.

"I must've gone up another size…" Ara thought out loud, her eyes going to her own cleavage again.

"Don't worry! You just get one size larger and do this!" Rena said as she showed Ara that she had slightly tucked in the bottom of the top into her pants. "You just have to tuck it in a little!"

"I see…" Ara said, though slightly depressed at the thought she hadn't really thought of doing that.

Rena smiled as she took off the top and gave it to her, saying "Here! Try it yourself!"

"Okay! Could you help me with this though? I'm kinda new to this." Ara asked the elf, who happily squealed before she began to help Ara dress up.

Meanwhile from the stall across the hall, Aisha watched them with a face of envy.

_Why do they get to have such big boobs?_ She thought as she tried to dig her fingers into the framing of the stall door.

But she sighed as she looked back to the mirror. Rena helped her choose out a purple t-shirt that matched her hair and eyes and a black pair of pants that to Aisha were extremely comfortable. She honestly couldn't help but think she looked cute. She then looked back to the two across the hall, with Rena giving the raven hair girl advice and even some clothes to try on from her own pile.

_She's like a big sister. An overexcited and way too loud sister. But a sister none the less. _She thought with a smile. It was as if though she had two older sisters rather than just one who worked all the time.

She missed the days back when her older sister used to play with her all the time. But as they got older, they slowly went their own separate ways. But every now and then, they'd have their bit of fun.

_Maybe I'll bring her with me next time_ she thought with a heartwarmed smile. She then looked back at the mirror, and did a quick turn around.

She began to think _I wonder if Elsword would li-_before she suddenly caught herself as she cried out "NO! WHAT AM I THINKING!?"

Rena then poked into her stall as she asked "You ok Aisha?"

Aisha's face was flush with embarrassment as she answered "I'm fine…"

"Okay…well, hurry up then!" Rena replied before ducking out of doorway as she went to help Ara more.

Aisha then looked at the mirror, her thoughts going back to all the times Elsword was there to help her. All the things they had went through the past two or so months. Including the time she walked in on him when he had his shirt off.

_Maybe…Maybe I do like Els-_

The room suddenly began to shake as the sound of an explosion or something rippled through the stalls room.

"What was that!?" Ara said with a tint of fear. Even Rena was caught off guard. Aisha on the other hand, due to all the experiences she had as of recent, looked around before Eve came out of her stall, dressed in a sweater that almost covered her hands with its long sleeves and a black pair of pants similar to Aisha's.

"It came from outside, not far from here" Eve spoke, her voice without much emotion as usual, though Aisha could tell there was a little bit of worry mixed in with it.

Aisha had a pretty good idea of what was going on, after all, if she looked for it, she could feel it.

That feeling of impending bloodlust was back.

"Elsword, Hold on!" Aisha yelled as she quickly ran down the hall, summoning her staff mid-way.

As she left the store, she came to see the demon from before, Ran, to the left of her, and her friends on the left. Raven had apparently took a slash to his shoulder, it was bloody from a claw mark. But fortunately, the cut was shallow. But it still caused Raven some pain. And besides that, he was clearly still in no condition to fight, some of his wounds from their last encounter with Ran turning red.

"Why are you here!?" Chung said, his two guns already drawn. Apparently, he felt no need for discretion now. Aisha guessed it was because Chung wasn't as well known to the police anyhow, or he had past clients in the police.

Elsword on the other hand, was breathing heavily, which caused Aisha to panic. He was sitting down on the floor against the wall, which showed some signs of Elsword bleeding from his back.

"You idiot! What were you thinking!?" she yelled as she ran towards Elsword.

As she knelt down by his side, he pointed to the exit, and told her "Get out of here, Chung can handle it."

"I'm not going to leave you here to die!" Aisha yelled at him, tears in her eyes.

Meanwhile, Chung kept his gun pointed at Ran, who simply laughed, but his face held another story.

"It's because I want payback! I intend to make sure he suffers!" Ran said as he pointed at Raven, slightly surprised by the statement.

Chung simply smiled as he replied "Is that all? Because you'll have to go through me first. And unlike Raven, I actually know how to fight."

Ran looked at him with a menacing glare as he spoke "Is that so? Well, I might as well have fun with it then!" before dashing towards the white-clad gunman.

Soon enough, the two clashed, the demon's shadowy claws against the white steel of Chung's two guns.

Sparks flew with every time their weapons collided. Then, Chung jumped back, pulling out a multitude of gunshots towards Ran as he went through the air. Ran however, moved with swift speed, dodging and parrying away the shots as he closed the distance.

However, Chung simply smiled right before Ran reached him. Ran responded to this as he looked down, seeing the grenades at his feet.

He then jumped back just as the grenades exploded in balls of blue light. As he hit the ground, he wobbled slightly, surprised by the grenades' effects.

"It's over Ran!" Chung said as he slid towards Ran, ready to shoot him right in the head from below.

"Don't do it! He's my brother!" Ara cried out from the entrance of the shop.

Chung hesitated for a moment, but it was just long enough for ran to recover and kick away the assassin, who took the attack hard to the solar plexus, knocking him towards one of the nearby columns.

"CHUNG!"Eve yelled as she ordered her drones towards him, catching him mid air, cushioning his impact. But the drones fell to the ground next to him as he fell unconscious.

"Pathetic!" Ran said with an annoyed tone "And you call yourself an assassin? Hah, might as well end it!"

Ara then grabbed his arm as she cried "Please! Stop hurting him Aren!"

_Aren?_ Elsword thought, the name catching his interest.

"Get off!" He retorted as he shook her off, just about to slap her.

However, his slap never reached her as Elsword's boot caught him right in the face. Ran slid across the floor, but recovered as he got back up.

Ara looked up to her savior, his red hair shining in the sunlight.

"Elsword…" she said, a few tears in her eyes.

"I get it now, Ara. I should have known." He said, but in a serious tone she had never heard from him.

"I-I'm sorry…" Ara apologized with tears running down her face. "I should have told yo-"

Elsword cut her off as he said "Don't apologize. I should have noticed it sooner."

Then, he said a set of words that made Ara look up to him.

"Don't worry, I'll save your brother."

Ara looked in surprise as Elsword's hair suddenly turned into a snow white, which came to shock Raven and Rena as well, while Aisha could only smile.

"White…hair?" Raven muttered in surprise.

"No way…" Rena spoke, her mouth wide open.

Elsword had chosen to not only reveal his secret to the rest of them, but also save someone in need.

Even Ran looked surprised, but quickly recovered as he mockingly said "Well well, you're that masked brat I fought before, aren't you? I was wondering what corner you were hiding in. So, guess you want a re-"

But he didn't get to finish his sentence as Elsword not only closed the distance with amazing speed, he also put his fist right into the demon earl's face, knocking him back.

"Why you little brat!" Ran yelled as he swung his claw towards Elsword. However, the boy easily dodged his attacks and countered each and every one of the half-demon's blows.

"How!? How is he?" Raven spoke, his mouth agape at the fight before them.

Eve answered his question as she said "The grenades. Ran took damage from them."

Ara looked worried however. Elsword said he'd save Aren, but she didn't understand why he was hurting Ran.

"Don't worry."

Ara turned her head to see Aisha standing next to her.

"He doesn't go back on his word, I know that much" Aisha said with a smile, which stopped Ara's tears.

"DAMN YOU!" Ran said as he threw a haymaker cloaked in his shadowy aura at Elsword. However, Elsword caught the fist, much to Ran's surprise.

"I won't let you hurt Ara any longer, demon earl." Elsword replied before making a rune with his other hand.

Ran noticed the rune and tried to pull back, but to his agony, he flinched. He had taken too much damage.

The rune in Elsword's hand began to glow a brilliant gold, its light reaching throughout a large portion of the room.

"Secret Technique!" Elsword called out.

Ran struggled, trying to break away from the pain that held him there as well as Elsword's grip.

"PURIFY!" Elsword yelled as he pushed the rune into Ran's stomach. Ran screamed out as the light from the rune began to cover his body.

Suddenly, his black skin began to crack. The second he noticed this, he knew exactly what Elsword had done.

_Damn it all…_he thought as his consciousness began to fade away.

The black skin then shattered, along with the two horns on top his head. He then began to fall down, but Elsword held him up as the man's hair returned to jet black.

Ara couldn't help but cry tears of joy as she ran over to them.

She saw her brother was still breathing fine, as if though he was merely sleeping.

"See? What did I tell you?" Aisha said to her with a smile.

Ara couldn't help but cry some more. But then Elsword wept away the tears from one of her eyes.

"Hey, don't cry just yet Ara. We gotta get out of here first." He said with a genuine smile on his face.

Aisha couldn't help but smile as he helped pick her up. Even if it made her a little envious.

"By the way Aisha…" Elsword spoke, catching her off guard.

"Ye-Yeah?" Aisha spoke, wondering what Elsword was about to say to her.

"You have a very soft yet firm butt." He said with a mischievous grin on his face.

She then realized that when she knelt down next to him earlier, he copped a feel while she was distracted.

"PERVERT!" she said as she punched him in the face, her face as red as Elsword's normal hair color.

* * *

**Chung: Pervert…**

**Eve: Pervert…**

**Rena: Pervert…**

**Raven: Pervert…**

**Elsword: Oh come on! It was just one feel!**

**Ara: Elsword…girls don't like to be felt up like that…**

**Aisha: You got that right Ara *looks away with a pouty look***

**Chung: Anyhow, that was quite the eventful chapter**

**Rena: Yeah, I didn't even think Ara would have such a hard childhood**

**Eun: It was hard for her, but I believe that she was able to make through it quite well**

**Ara: Oh Eun, you don't need to praise me that much!**

**Elsword: Well, guess she wasn't so clumsy back then, right?**

**Eun: …**

**Ara: …**

**Elsword: …oops…*gets slapped by Eve***

**WVH: Well anyhow, I hoped everyone enjoyed this chapter that took me quite some time to make! So don't forget to R&amp;R!**

**Chung: Wait, are the people who messed up Aren happen to b-**

**WVH: Don't forget to R&amp;R guys!**

**Chung: *gets out his guns* Answer my question! And don't you dare cut me of-**


	16. Chapter 17: Calm Before The Storm

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**And now, it's time to get one of the biggest arcs of the story underway, though there's a little bit of filler of course, considering the arc transition. But I'll say this now, a certain organization is about to make its move…also…someone explain to me how in the heck I wrote the whole chapter in one sitting!?**

* * *

_Velder Academy, City of Velder, 2:15 pm_

As usual for this time of day, Elsword sat near the windows in the front of a classroom, listening to a teacher talk about some subject he already had a clear understanding of.

However, he wasn't really paying attention as he looked out the window next to his seat, his mind elsewhere.

It had been a week since he used the purification rune, a technique meant to suppress evil, on Aren.

And after everything that happened, his friends still cared about him.

They even listened to his whole life story.

* * *

_6 Days Ago…._

_Aisha's house, City of Velder, 4:00 pm_

"…and so, after that, Penesio helped me transfer in here about 2 years ago." Elsword explained, concluding the story he had told Aisha a while back.

Chung simply nodded as he said "That explains a lot. No wonder Black Arms became less active a few years back. "

While Chung simply accepted it, Raven looked at Elsword with a scowl. He stood up as he spoke "I knew you were hiding something. But why did you keep it a secret from us?"

Elsword looked away, looking ashamed as he said "I'm sorry. I just didn't want to get you guys involved. But after what happened with Ran, I-"

Raven simply looked away as he said "Save your excuses! I don't want to hear them!"

Aisha looked at the two of them with a worried look on her face. They had just become good friends, yet now it seemed that there was a rift between the two.

Aisha then spoke out "He didn't have a choice! He was trying to protect us! It's just how he is!" Everyone turned their heads toward her, and Elsword gave her a warm smile as he replied "Thank you Aisha, but it was still wrong of me to hide it from everyone…"

Ara said "But you didn't do anything wrong! You were just protecting us, right?"

Raven looked at the boy again. He had a sorrowful look on his face, as if though the fact he kept it all a secret was not the only thing making him feel regret.

Raven sighed and looked away. He then spoke "Well, I'm not gonna forgive you."

This caused everyone to lower their heads, their looks showing the sadness of raven's disapproval.

Raven then said "But, I won't tell my brother about your hero stuff out of respect, for saving Rena" and Aisha smiled as she noticed how Raven tried to hide his blush. He still cared after all.

Elsword replied "Thank you Raven" with a smile.

However, just as it seemed things calmed down, Rena suddenly squealed out of excitement.

While Raven, Eve, Ara, and Chung looked confused, Elsword and Aisha had a very good idea what was about to come out of her mouth.

"Aisha! I knew you liked Elsword!"

"Wait, what?" Ara said, surprised at what Rena said.

"I said it's not like that!" Aisha retorted, clearly flustered and embarrassed. Meanwhile, Elsword simply laughed, knowing the spectacle that was unfolding.

Rena continued to push Aisha's buttons as she said "But you said you had a crush on the Magician! And Els is the Magician! I knew there was something going on between you two recently!"

Meanwhile, Ara had a look of panic on her face as she muttered "A-Aisha likes him t-too? What a-am I supposed to d-do!?"

Rena picked right up on that, seeming to almost teleport in front of Ara as she squealed "Omigod! You like him too? It's a love triangle! I've always wanted to see a love triangle! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

And Eve simply said "It wasn't obvious to the rest of you?" which gave Chung a look as he said "Uh Eve, not everyone can read people like you do."

Raven watched the scene before him and let out a small laugh. Though he instantly regretted it a moment after as the two girls yelled at him, retorting "It's not funny!"

And of course, while Elsword laughed, a part of him still regretted his decision. But he simply shrugged as he thought _Well, too late now_ before joining in on the fun.

* * *

_Still though, I didn't think Chung used to be royalty_ he thought with a smile as he looked out the window. The sun was high in the sky, and it was beautiful weather, with clear blue skies and barely a hint of clouds blocking it's vivid colors.

His smile disappeared soon after though, his mind directed towards one thought.

_Black Arms…to think both of Chung and Ara were also put through so much pain by them. Just what are they planning…_

"Elsword Sieghart!"

Elsword's train of thought suddenly derailed as he looked towards the voice that called his name. Aren Haan was standing in front of the classroom, looking slightly annoyed.

"Y-yes?" Elsword replied.

"Read the passage" he spoke. It was clear to both of them Elsword hadn't been paying attention to the lecture.

"Ah!" Eslword said before looking at the line in the textbook he believed Aren wanted him to read.

"After certain information reached the ears of the civilians of Elder, they then began to protest against their king, which eventually led to the collapse of the royalty of Elder. Though it is not comfirmed, it is said that a man named the Howling Shadow was the center of the movement." Eslword read out loud from the textbook.

"Very well said" Aren complemented his student. "But, we're on the next page, Mr. Sieghart."

This caused Elsword's face to turn the red of embarrassment before the teacher asked for someone else to read the 'correct' passage.

But however, he looked over towards Ara, who simply tried to tell her she was sorry about that. But he couldn't help but smile a little as he looked at the two of them.

Aren was no longer plagued by the headaches that he had from Ran being inside his mind. And his skin tone even became less pale.

It made Elsword smile, looking at the two of them. They deserved to be happy together.

But however, as the class continued on, he couldn't help himself from thinking about his own family.

About how he saw his sister's corpse. About the image that was forever burned into his mind all those years ago.

* * *

_Velder Central Police Station, City of Velder, 5:00 pm_

In the many cubicles of the station, which were now nearly empty as the end of the shift drawed near, two men squatted next to a large filing cabinet, sorting through the hundreds of papers that filled its contents.

"Thank you sir! But you didn't have to help me with this, its my job to sort these today sir." Lowe said to his superior, police chief Edan.

"Maybe, but I just felt like it is all. Better than doing it alone I suppose" Edan said as he put one of the files back in the cabinet.

"Wait, you look through these alone sir?" Lowe said, slightly confused at Edan's said actions.

Edan simply smiled as she said "Well, it's good to keep yourself in the loop. I don't get to look at every single thing from my desk now do I?"

Lowe thought about it for a moment before saying "You have a point sir!" before putting in a folder on his side of the cabinet.

Edan then said "You can drop the formalities Lowe. It's not like we have people to impress near us at the moment."

"But si-"

"Edan"

"Edan, aren't formalities important?" Lowe asked his superior.

Edan simply replied "Yes, but they aren't always necessary. I thought you would know that."

Lowe looked at the man and simply spoke "Of course Edan, sir!"

The cheif then picked up another folder to put away before speaking "Anyhow, since we're the only ones here you can drop the act for the moment."

Lowe looked slightly surprised as he said "What act sir?"

Edan then spoke almost casually "Well, about the fact you're a mole and have been gathering certain intel."

Lowe looked at the man once again, his face now completely different from before.

"How long have you known?" he asked the chief.

Edan put away another file as he answered "Since a week ago, when I noticed you deleting that security footage at the mall."

Lowe started to move his left hand towards his weapon until Edan said "I didn't say I was going to apprehend you."

Lowe then pulled his hand away from the weapon. He couldn't help but question "Why?"

The chief made a small laugh as he said "Well, I certainly like a little bit of excitement around here."

Lowe looked at the man slightly confused before Edan continued "That and you're actually competent, considering your past as an info broker."

This alarmed Lowe, who looked shocked. _How did he know!?_

"It's called you're not the only one trying to dig up information about Black Arms, Lowe."

Lowe then realized it. _That's why he wanted to do this! _he thought.

"To think though, that you used to be an informant for them, but then you disappeared. And not long after, the Howling Shadow appeared in Elder." Edan continued, pretty much explaining what he had dug up on Lowe.

"Why are you telling me this?" Lowe asked, now calmed down once more.

"Well, recently, they have suddenly went quiet." Edan said as he put another folder away, though his face just as serious as the situation he was about to explain.

"How so?" Lowe asked, speaking now not as a fellow police officer or a friend to Edan, but as a info broker like he used to be long ago.

Edan then looked at him as he said "There haven't been any more magician kidnappings for 4 days. And there hasn't been any other signs of them around either."

Lowe perked his eyebrow up, getting an idea of how Edan became interested in Black Arms. He then asked the police chief "You think they might make a move soon?"

Edan smiled as he put the least folder into the cabinet as he replied "Exactly. Whatever they were using those magicians for might be used soon."

Lowe thought about it for a moment. It was true that around the time he left Black Arms, there were rumors about a project that required massive amounts of energy.

"Why are you telling me all of this?" Lowe asked the police officer once again.

Edan shrugged as he said "Well, I thought you might want to look into this, and maybe warn that friend of yours that they might be making a move soon. After all, that kid did resolve that situation in the mall without killing that girl's brother."

Lowe looked at the man, having a better idea of what was on the man's mind.

Edan then looked at his watch as he said "Well, I got to get going now. Promised my own brother I'd help him with his homework."

As his superior walked out the office, Lowe thought _Black Arms…just what are they up to?_

* * *

_Black Arms Base, Location Unknown, 5:30 pm_

A man in a white lab coat walked into a large laboratory that was filled to the brim with all sorts of equipment. The room was filled with turbines, engines, and mechanical parts. And in the center, a man in his sixties, his hair a dark grey, was typing on a keyboard pedestal next to a sort of storage tank filled with bright orange liquid.

The scientist walked up to the old man as he flipped one of the bangs of his peach hair away from his face.

"So, how's your project going, Wally?" he asked the old man.

The old man turned his face slightly towards the man behind him to see the scientist behind him and then turned back towards his work.

"It's almost complete now." Wally answered his subordinate; not even taking the time to point out the man should be calling him 'sir'.

The subordinate laughed with a "Kekekekek!" before saying "Guess that means are finally going to get interesting soon, correct?"

Wally laughed himself as he made the final adjustments to his current project. He then turned towards his subordinate as he said "Of course, Mr. Kim! Soon, the world will finally be ours!"

Wally then turned back towards the capsule as he said "And no one will be able to stop us!"

Suddenly, the figure within the capsule opened its eyes, both of which glowed an eerie orange through the visor it wore on its face.

* * *

**Elsword: Well, looks like everything is coming full circle now, right?**

**WVH: Pretty much!**

**Chung: I'm a little bit worried about this though. Especially after that last scene.**

**Eve: I have to agree, considering who Wally was talking to.**

**Chung: I meant that thing they had in the tank.**

**Eve: …can I tell him about it?**

**WVH: No, not yet.**

**Add: Oh, you guys talking about me? Kekekekek!**

**Eve: Get out, now. *Tries to laser Add, though he dodges the shots as he runs from her***

**Rena: I can't wait to see who confesses to Elsword first!**

**Aisha and Ara: Stop it Rena! We don't want you meddling!**

**Rena: But I can't decide who looks cuter with Els!**

**Raven: …can I leave now?**

**WVH: Well, I hope everyone enjoyed the beginning of this arc! So don't forget to R&amp;R! And be sure to stay tuned!**


	17. Chapter 18: The Spark

**DISCLAIMER: Note that I do NOT own Elsword or any of its characters, they belong to KOG games, KillerCombo, and Nexon. Note that I do technically own any of the OCs that may be introduced later on in the series. For now, just enjoy the show!**

**Things are slowly building up, and now, it's a matter of who moves first…Also, the OC makes his second appearance! And if you're wondering, yes I made the author name based off my OC's name!**

* * *

_City of Elder, 12:07 am, 3 and a half years ago…_

The city was cloaked in the darkness of night, saving but a few streetlamps to give light.

One of the laws of the city was that all residents were to stay indoors after 9:30 pm. While some of the locals disapproved of the law, they still followed it. They believed their king to be a benevolent ruler, so there could be a little leeway.

However, little did they know, its true purpose was to hide the corrupt underworld that festered in the night.

A man in a grey cloak ran for his life as he turned a corner in one of the many alleys that filled the city. He looked behind him to see his pursuers still hot on his tail.

He had been running from them for hours, hoping to lose them. He wanted to put 'that' organization behind him. He had seen enough of their vile nature to make him sick to his stomach.

However, his legs were starting to lose strength. He couldn't keep this up much longer.

He looked back again to see his pursuers still following him.

That was when he made his mistake.

As he turned the next corner, since he was still looking back, he didn't see the man with the crowbar that had been lying in wait for him. The man hit him hard in the leg. The runaway yelled out in pain as he fell to the ground.

As he got back up, he could see his leg was now clearly broken, the pain agonizing.

"What's the matter Lowe? Got nothing else to say?" one of the men asked the runaway, a cruel smirk on his face as he played with the crowbar in his hands.

The runaway simply said "I said I'm done with you people, no, you monsters!" as he tried to back away.

However, the man retaliated by shoving his boot onto Lowe's shoulder, causing him to cry out again in pain.

The man with the crowbar spoke "Maybe we're monsters, but we know that it's better to keep rats like you…"

He then raised the crowbar as his allies drew closer to the two of them, each of them raising their weapons above their heads. All with the intention to kill.

"Silent!" he then said as he began to swing the crowbar down.

Suddenly, a gunshot was heard, and the crowbar flew out of the man's hand.

"Yare Yare, now what do we have here?" a voice spoke from the shadows.

All of them, even Lowe, looked towards the shadow the voice came from. In them, a man in a black coat stood. His face was covered by a pair of orange-tinted ski goggles and a facemask that covered the lower part of his face. And his hair was a golden blonde, one of the only things that stood out from the shadows the man stood. And in his hand was a black revolver, and the barrels held a strange glow.

_Magic bullets?_ Lowe asked in his thoughts as the man walked forward and into the moonlight.

It was then noticeable that he wore black gauntlets and each arm as well as the moonlight shone off them.

"Just punishing a fool, that's all." One of the men said, regaining his confidence.

The others began to join in. One of them spoke "Yeah, and try anything else funny and maybe you'll join him."

"Is that so? Just because you have numbers?" the gunman replied. All of them had a good idea that the man had a smirk behind that mask.

"You making fun of us!?" one of the men retorted, clearly annoyed at the gunman's question.

"Perhaps" the black cloaked gunman replied.

The men took this as a mockery as their leader yelled "GET HIM!" as they ran towards the man.

It was over in less than a minute.

The group that had ganged up on Lowe was now down on the ground, mostly unconscious, but all of them with bones broken and shattered all over the place. Even Lowe was surprised at the outcome. Save for some of the higher-ups, he had never seen anyone fight like that.

The man walked over to Lowe and knelt down.

"You okay kid?" the man asked Lowe.

Lowe was caught off guard by the man's courtesy, but answered "I'll live."

He then asked the man "Just who are you?"

The man pulled down the facemask for a moment to show his smile as he spoke "You can say I'm sort of a wanderer. Name's Wolfen."

He then reached out his hand towards Lowe.

"Wolfen Va Heron"

* * *

_Sanderian Badlands, 4:30 pm_

Lowe shook his head as he rode his bike through the badlands, trying to get himself focused.

_Why the heck am I thinking about back then right now?_ He thought. It had been a long time since that happened. Though it was the turning point of his life, he had much more pressing matters at hand.

"_Whatever they were using those magicians for might be used soon."_

Edan's words from the day before had troubled him. After all, he was certainly right about the recent inactivity. Lowe hadn't even thought about that considering how busy he'd been with the serial killer case.

He had decided the night before that there was only one way to figure out what was going on.

He was going to have to infiltrate the headquarters of the Black Arms Engineering Division.

The reason he chose that place was besides being the least guarded of the different bases, one thing was highly probable.

There was a good chance Wally, the head of the Engineering Division of that Hydra of an organization would be there.

He had learned a while ago just how large an organization Black Arms was. It was one of the reasons Wolfen asked Lowe to join the police force in Velder. After he disappeared 2 and a half years ago, Lowe slowly got a better and better idea of the organization.

And more importantly, he found out that after the loss of their base in Elder Castle, the Engineering Division moved its HQ to the middle of Sander, far enough that it was almost impossible to find it without any sort of navigation. All of the information and equipment cost him a fortune though.

_I hope this is worth it, otherwise I'm going on Ramen for a week for no reason _he thought, joking in his mind, as he looked at the map, which would had fluttered away in the sandstorm winds if he didn't hold it tight.

After a little bit, he stopped the bike next to an outcropping as he took out his tools. After looking at the map for a moment, he grabbed his binoculars and looked through them.

Far off in the distance to the northeast, he saw a sort of natural rock formation that looked like a multitude of natural pillars that held up a larger portion of rock.

But as he looked closer, he could see a glint of metal.

He had found what he was looking for.

He then pulled his bike behind the outcropping so that while it couldn't been seen from the fortification, it could still be pulled out quickly in the case things went wrong.

He then began to walk towards the base slowly, using the sandstorm as cover, as well as the cape he had pulled out the night before. It was a shade of brown that would easily be mistaken an outcropping to an unsuspecting guard.

As he made his way closer, he could hear the voices of two guards in the middle of a conversation.

"…so that white-hair prick called me 'a piece of trash'"

"Dang that's harsh"

_Guess the guys up top still think of their solders as trash _Lowe thought. He chose to ignore the conversation as he got closer.

Suddenly, he heard a loud clang and got tensed.

_Am I discovered?_ He thought. He then took a slight peek from the edge of his cape.

"Get back to work you useless maggots! If you have time to talk, you have time to watch!" a voice yelled from over the wall.

"See? Total prick" the guard muttered to his companion, who nodded in agreement.

Lowe breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way to the edge of the compound.

_Seems they still hire idiots_ he thought with a smirk on his face.

* * *

_In a diner in the commercial district, City of Velder, 5:30 pm_

Ara let out a sigh as she took a sip from her drink. She then looked over at the boy across the table from her.

She thought _I'm happy Elsword came, but…_

_WHY DID EVERYONE ELSE HAVE TO COME!_ Ara screamed in her mind. Everyone of the friends she made recently: Elsword, Aisha, Chung, Eve, Raven, and Rena sat around a double table as they talked and ate their food.

_Well, it's what friends do, right?_ Eun spoke to Ara.

_Maybe, but I didn't want it to be like this!_ she replied to the fox spirit, thinking back to an hour ago.

She had finally, FINALLY mustered the courage to ask Elsword out, though it came out awkwardly, she managed to ask him out.

While at first, she was okay with him having the idea it was to thank him for saving her brother, Chung joined their conversation and asked if he could join.

And just one more person wouldn't hurt, right?

She learned just what could happen.

Soon enough, every single one of them ended up getting invited, and so, they all sat here at the table in a diner her brother recommended.

While her brother did give her some money for the date, she had no idea it would turn into this.

_At least Onii-chan thinks ahead_ she thought as she looked at the little note that was in her wallet.

'Just in case all your friends end up joining, there's a little extra' it read. Though it also annoyed her he somehow had some foresight without telling her.

"So, as I was saying, this guy literally tried to escape prison by riding in a dump truck. Honestly, it was just too funny! He literally had a diaper on his head in the video recording!" Elsword explained, telling them what he had seen on the news earlier that day.

"Okay, I have to admit, that was kind of funny" Raven replied. "He was a bank robber or something, right?"

Chung put himself into the conversation as he said "Yeah, and if I remember right, it was the Magician who basically caught him, right?"

"Yep! He puts those runes on the walls so the police can't try to cover it up!" the red head joked, though it was pretty much him who put them there.

"Can you guys not talk about that at the table?" Aisha told them, slightly annoyed at the topics they were bringing up.

"Oh relax Aisha, they're boys, that simple" Rena spoke before biting down a mouthful of non-meat spaghetti.

"Point taken" Aisha said in surrender, choosing to eat her food rather than listen to the boys' conversation.

"What do you mean by that Rena?" Eve asked the elf. The elf then went ahead to try and explain it to the nasod, and even Aisha couldn't tell if Eve understood Rena's logic.

She looked over to the bumbling idiot who was actually the hero she had long admired. Many times, she couldn't tell who the real Elsword was: the one who always fooled around with pranks and jokes, or the serious and smart hero who pulled off some jokes every now and then.

Her gaze then wandered towards Ara, who seemed to be slightly pouting.

_I wonder why she's so down_ Aisha thought as she looked at her.

Then after a few seconds, she remembered:

"_A-Aisha likes him t-too? What a-am I supposed to d-do!?"_

_You gotta be kidding me_ Aisha thought in her mind. The fact she had literally tried to ask Elsword out annoyed her, yet she was also sad that despite the courage she had, it turned into this.

"What am I thinking!?" she said out loud as she tried to get the idea she liked Elsword out of her mind.

"Something wrong Aisha?" Rena asked, cutting off her conversation with Eve.

"Nothing, I'm perfectly fine!" she said, trying to not blush.

"Mmmhmm." Rena said with an interesting smile on her face that Aisha instantly recognized as 'I know what you're thinking'

Elsword laughed as he said "I think we both know what you're thinking Aisha!"

"Shut up Eldork!" she yelled, holding up a fork, which didn't even intimidate the redhead, making her even more flustered.

_You have a very interesting choice of friends….and love rivals…_ Eun spoke to Ara, confused by their actions.

"Agreed" she whispered.

* * *

_Black Arms Base in Trock's Lair, Sanderian Desert, 6:00 pm_

Lowe looked down through the darkness of the ventilation shaft, scanning the hallway under him. The few guards stationed there were still having casual conversations, which informed him that he hadn't been heard.

He then continued to crawl through the shaft, being quiet to the point even a mouse would be jealous of his stealth.

After he got over the wall earlier, while avoiding guards at every turn, he managed to find the opening to the ventilation shaft, though it took him a good amount of time to get to where he was now.

_Thank El I took those infiltration lessons_ he thought as he continued to crawl through the shaft. He had disabled just about every single bit of security he had come across as he crawled through the shaft: lasers, heat sensors, security cameras, and even fans meant to shred intruders to bits.

As he crawled deeper into the complex, while the presence of guards slowly decreased, the amount of mechanical security increased.

Soon enough, he turned a corner and right before he went any further, he heard a humming sound and stopped himself.

_Tch. They even set up electricity here_ he thought as he examined the path in front of him.

He then got out a pair of rubber gloves, boots, and kneepads out of the small pack he had brought with him.

_Really need to thank that instructor_ he thought as he put the protective gear on quietly. He had done something like this before back in his days with the Black Arms, though this space was much more cramped compared to back then.

_Well, here goes nothing_ he said mentally as he put his hand onto the metal.

He then began to move quickly yet silently down the shaft. If he wasn't fast enough, the rubber would melt from the hot metal and the current would enter his body, likely killing him instantly.

As he continued to move down the shaft, he could feel the rubber heating up under his palms and knees.

_Almost there!_ He thought as he began to go slightly faster.

He barely even noticed that he made it past the electric vent until he came to the next intersection.

"Phew" he said before he carefully took off the gear and put it in his pack.

_That got a little too close_ he thought as he slid the pack back on his shoulder.

He then looked back to the intersection. It went 3 ways: one was the path he was on now, one that was very dark went to his left, and one had a strange orange glow on his right.

_Well, that looks suspicious_ he thought as he crawled over to the path on the right.

It wasn't long until he saw the opening blocked by a grill the light came from.

He then looked through it to see the contents of the room on the other side.

As he scanned the room, his eyes clearly held the shock of what he was looking at.

"Dear El…" he whispered to himself in horror.

* * *

_Back at the diner…_

"That was a great meal!" Elsword said.

"Have to admit, it was pretty good" Raven said in agreement.

"Yeah, not often do you find a diner with good food like that." Chung explained.

"Will you guys just chill?" Aisha said slightly annoyed, though even she couldn't stay mad for long. The food was pretty good in her perspective.

They had just exited the diner, their stomachs well satisfied, and Ara's wallet now much lighter, which she was now looking down into.

"You know, you didn't have to pay for all of it" Rena said over her shoulder.

"No, it's fine! I-I just wanted to t-treat you guys for all you've done for me!" Ara replied with a bit of a stutter.

"You are just too cute!" the elf squealed before pulling Ara's cheeks a little.

Aisha couldn't help but laugh with pity as she said "Well, guess Rena's found herself another friend to tease", thinking back to when they were in Middle School, the elf just loved to do what she was doing to Ara at the very moment.

Elsword let out a small grin as he spoke "Well, they say it's the small things that matter."

Soon enough, they all went their separate ways home: Eve went alone towards her place, which made Aisha think _I would not want to meet her in a dark alley_; Raven and Rena went together towards Raven's place, and apparently, Rena was going to sleep over since her bedroom at home was getting renovated; and Chung and Ara went towards their homes together since they had to go in the same direction.

And that left Aisha with the redhead she had started to have a love-hate relationship for.

"That was fun, right?" Elsword said with a grin on his face and hands on the back of his head as he walked forwards.

"Y-yeah" Aisha said, her mind wandering back to her earlier thoughts. In public, Elsword seemed like a goofball, but when he was alone, his eyes clearly told a different story.

But even when he was pulling a prank on her, ever since the night he saved her life, she couldn't help but feel at ease when he was around.

Even if he was pushing her buttons.

She then stopped walking. There was something she wanted to hear.

"Elsword…" Aisha began to say.

"Hmm?" Elsword replied.

"Don't ever change, okay?" the purplette spoke, her head down towards the ground to hide her blush.

She then suddenly felt his hand on her head, and it was warm.

"Don't worry! I don't plan on changing anytime soon! That okay with you?" he replied.

She then looked up to see a soft smile on his face, which made her heart skip a beat or two.

"Y-yeah" she said with her own smile.

_Maybe he really is the one…_ she thought before they continued their way home.

* * *

_Sanderian Badlands, 6:15 pm_

Four silhouettes made their way across the desert, leaving trails of sand and dust behind their wake

Lowe rode on his motorcycle in front of the other three, each of them had their own desert modified motorcycles, and each of them were packing some kind of weapon.

The one on his right had a buster blade he held in his left hand. Meanwhile, the two on his left each held a pistol in their free hand.

Lowe was in a sticky situation indeed. The second he saw that room, the alarms finally went off, and he was forced to leave with force. He managed to get out of the base alive, but the blood on his left shoulder and the cut that bled on the right side of his face spoke that it had clearly been a struggle.

The rider on his right then made his move, coming towards Lowe with the huge sword.

Lowe quickly parried away the blade, sending the man back towards where he came. He then quickly pulled back slightly, dodging the bullet from his left side that would have went right into his head if not for the maneuver he just pulled.

He then quickly sheathed the sword and pulled out his own pistol.

And unlike the man who just tried to shoot him, he was a much better shot.

The bullet that came out of the barrel went right into his attacker's cranium, sending him and his bike for a spin, which the other gunman barely dodged as he veered to the left.

Then, Lowe quickly pulled away his hand from the steering to grab his sword as the swordsman came back once again. This time, the man put much more force into his blade, and now steering as hard as he could towards Lowe.

In the corner of his eye, Lowe could see the guard on his left aiming his pistol. It was clear what they were trying to do.

However, Lowe wasn't planning on letting them have their way.

Lowe then dropped the pistol and not only began steering to the left, he also hit the brakes on the bike. It was just enough to send the swordsman's bike veering with a spin to the left. But it also meant the gunman was now right in his path.

The two crashed into each other, their bikes exploding into a multitude of parts on impact. Both of them didn't even have the chance to scream before they were sent flying off the machines, their bodies shattering when they hit the ground, though the gunman was cut in half by the swordsman's blade as he flew, leaving a trail of blood where he flew.

However, Lowe didn't stop to see if he managed to take them out of not. He was already back at full speed, riding in the direction of the Oasis City of Sander.

One train of thought had almost completely taken over his head.

_I gotta hurry! I have to warn them they're going to attack! _

Little did he know though, far above him, a figure flew through the sky, looking at Lowe from above like a bird.

It looked at him with its bright orange eyes, keeping its eyes on the infiltrator.

"Your orders, Master?" he spoke.

A voice from what sounded like radio then said "Follow him. Where he goes will be our first target. It will be the perfect punishment for trying to spy on us. Do not fail me, Valak"

"Yes sir" Valak said as he flew high in the sky, making sure that he wouldn't be seen, yet be able to follow Lowe.

The spark was now lit. Black Arms was making its move.

* * *

**Elsword: Well, guess this means things are gonna get crazy real soon.**

**Rena: True, with all the action *looks towards Aisha and Ara with a grin on her face* and romance.**

**Aisha and Ara: Please stop teasing us!**

**Rena: NEVER!**

**Aren: Maybe I should help you with that!**

**Ara: NOOOOOOO!**

**Raven: I know your pain Ara, siblings are the most evil of teasers…**

**Eve: I'll make a mental note of that**

**WVH: Well, we had to light the spark sooner or later**

**Chung: True, Black Arms was bound to come after us eventually**

**Rena: Aisha! *starts messing with Aisha* You're such a cute little tsundere! **

**Aisha: STOP IT RENA!**

**WVH: Well anyhow, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

**Wolfen: So don't forget to R &amp; R? Right?**

**Elsword: Sensei!?**

**WVH: WHY DO YOU GUYS KEEP INTRUDING TOO EARLY!?**

**Add: You rang?**

**WVH: …see ya guys!...*mutters* why me?**


	18. Chapter 19: The Black Nasod

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**And it's time for some conflict! With Lowe heading back to Velder while being followed by Valak, the battle is about to start! So place your bets on who will win, who will lose, and who might meet a tragic end! So get out that popcorn ladies and gents!**

* * *

_Aisha's House, Residential District, City of Velder, 6:30 am_

Once again, as the sun rose outside, Aisha tossed and turned while having her usual dreams.

Every one of her dreams somehow involved the Magician, though recently she saw Elsword instead occasionally. She assumed it was because The Magician was actually Elsword.

Or that she was starting to like him in that way. Though part of her mind screamed in terror at the thought.

But nonetheless, as she turned away from the window, she muttered "Elsword" in her sleep.

"Oh, so now I'm in your dreams too? I must really be doing a number on you!" a very familiar voice said.

Aisha opened her eyes as the dream faded, to see Elsword right across from her.

In her bed, looking directly at her.

As her face once again became as red as the boy's hair, she yelled "PERVERT!" before punching him off the bed with a fist to the face.

She then grabbed him by the collar, and said "Stay out of my room you idiot!" before tossing him out her bedroom door.

After the door shut, he whispered to himself "Heh, it's better this way"

He then picked himself off the floor and walked towards the stairs. Though he couldn't help but look at the door and think _Should I apologize?_

He then shook his head as he thought _No! I might like her, but I don't want her to get hurt because of me!_ He had already seen enough sorrow in his life, and had involved his friends way more than he should have.

First, he revealed his identity by accident when he saved Aisha from the kidnapping, then he nearly fought Chung to the death, and then he told the others the truth because he couldn't take lying to them anymore.

His master told him being a vigilante is a hard road. Elsword thought he was talking about the physical danger he would be getting himself into, but now Elsword understood what his master really meant.

_He meant the stress of worrying about the people I care about_ he thought as he walked down the stairs with his hand leaning on the rail.

It was the reason why his master told him to never get innocent people involved. And he knew he had basically violated that principle to the point of no return.

But then, his mind went back towards one of his master's other lessons.

"_If you ever find a true friend, never lie to them_"

This made Elsword smile a little. He was sure he made the right choice. If he kept lying to them, the guilt would have eaten him whole.

_Wait though, which one is more important?_ He began to ponder. In some ways, the two lessons were polar opposites. Yet they both involved people he may care about.

"You going to block the stairs all day?"

He then turned around to see Noel standing behind him, looking slightly impatient.

"Heh, sorry about that" Elsword said as he moved to the side.

As Noel walked past him down the stairs, she let out "So, who asked who out first?"

"Wha!?" Elsword said slightly surprised.

"Just kidding! Good luck though!" Noel replied before walking the rest of the way down.

He stood there for a few seconds, with one thing on his mind.

_I did not take her for the type of sister who teases her siblings! She's kinda like my-_

However, his face suddenly fell into tormented depression. Just the thought of his sister reminded him of the hell he went through. About the experiments that led to his sister's death. About what day it was.

"Els?" Aisha spoke from behind him.

"Oh, hey Aisha!" he replied, his face returning to his normal grin.

"You know, if you stand here all day, we're gonna be late." She explained to the redhead.

"R-right!" he said before he went down the rest of the stairs.

As he walked down, Aisha muttered "Elsword…"

She saw the face he was making before, the face she had come to recognize as him thinking too much about his dark past. She could tell even through that fake smile he looked at her with afterwards.

"Oh, so I'm not allowed to stick to the stairs and you are? Come on Aisha!" the boy said from the kitchen.

"S-sorry! I'll be right there!" she replied before running the rest of the way down the stairs.

* * *

_City Streets, City of Velder, 6:47 am_

The sunlight slowly began to fill the streets, and many citizens of the city began to fill the streets. Most of which were those that worked during the day, and in the case of a certain duo, students heading to school.

"So, you do the homework?" Aisha asked Elsword.

"Yeah, too easy." Elsword answered.

"So you aren't as much of a slacker as I thought." Aisha replied.

"Yeah, I guess" Elsword said.

Aisha could tell Elsword was slightly out of it. But she wasn't sure why.

_Well, I guess there's only one way to know_ she thought.

"You okay Elsword?" Aisha asked of the redhead, and she looked worried.

"I'm fine…though I might leave school early today." he replied with a tone of sorrow.

Aisha let out a concerned "Why? Is it something to do with your sister?"

He then looked at her, and said "I guess I can't hide it from you."

He then spoke, with a face filled with sorrow.

"Today is the anniversary of when….she died."

His answer hit her hard. It was as if though the day before all made sense now. The reason he acted so childish yesterday was to hide the sorrow he felt. A pain that would never fade for him.

"Elsword-" Aisha began to speak.

Elsword cut her off though as he said "It's ok. I know you care, that's what matters" with a soft smile.

Aisha made a smile as she said "Don't get the wrong idea, Eldork"

"Seems you two are getting chummy."

"I-I care about Elsword too!"

The two looked around to see Chung and Ara coming up behind them, joining the two on their way to school. Though to Aisha's annoyance, Ara decided to hold his arm.

"Oh, hey guys!" Elsword greeted the two.

"Hey Chung!...and Ara" the purplette greeted the two, though there was less enthusiasm towards the latter.

"Is it just me, or is this kinda déjà vu?" Chung asked with a grin on his face. The redhead and purplette laughed, though Ara looked slightly confused, not understanding the inside joke.

The last time they walked with Chung to school was back when the two were enemies, though now once again they were the sort of friends who end up laughing together half the time.

"What are we laughing about?" Ara said, slightly embarrassed to be out of the loop.

"Inside joke" Elsword replied as he calmed down his laughter.

"It was before you transferred here. And I was there when it happened" Aisha spoke her own answer, while also with a bit of stealth grabbing Elsword's open arm.

Though Ara noticed this immeadiately, and started to hold the redhead more tightly.

"Is that so? Well just because you've known him longer doesn't mean you know him more." Ara said with a hint of spite.

Aisha retorted "Well, he told me his identity first. So he trusts me more."

Chung began to giggle nervously a little, it was clear where this was going.

Elsword tried to barge in saying "Hey girls, how about yo-"

But it failed as Ara continued the argument "Well he was nice to me the moment we met!"

Aisha then yelled "HE KIS-"

Then suddenly, the sound of an explosion and screams cut them off. And it was not far from them.

Chung and Elsword looked at each other and gave the other a small nod. They then ran into a nearby alley, leaving Ara and Aisha behind.

"Elsword!" the two girls yelled as they ran towards the corner. Then suddenly the two boys sprang back out, both in their respective alter egos.

As they dashed past the girls, Elsword yelled "Aisha, make sure you and Ara get somewhere safe!" before they turned at the nearby intersection.

Aisha then put her hand to her temple as she said "Great…", considering she was now stuck with the person that incurred her jealously more than often.

Ara then asked "Shouldn't we help him?"

Aisha then muttered "We should, but I have a feeling you'd be useless in a fight."

Ara took this as an insult and retorted "I can fight!"

Aisha then looked at her, slightly interested. She never thought of the clumsy girl as a fighter.

"And what exactly are you gonna fight with?" Aisha questioned her.

"Eun, help please?" Ara spoke.

"Hmm? Who's Eu-" Aisha started to ask, but was cut off as a spear suddenly appeared in her hands, and her appearance changed. The ebony of her hair turned silver, and her eyes a crimson red, and two red lines appeared on her face. But what was the most surprising was the slightly transparent fox tails that appeared behind Ara.

Ara then stood proud as she said "See? I told you I could use the powers of the Millenium Fox, right?"

At first Aisha looked shocked, but then the second she calmed down, she realized something.

"Why didn't you use that when we fought Ran?" Aisha asked the Fox-Girl.

Ara wasn't expecting that response as she stuttered "I-I just didn't to hurt Onii-cha-chan"

"Sure, why not?" Aisha said as she tried to not giggle.

Ara couldn't help but be red in embarrassment in the situation, though she was relieved Aisha couldn't hear Eun laughing as the spirit said _The funny part Is you didn't even think of doing that because you're so scatterbrained!_

_Eun, can you please stop?_ Ara said to the fox spirit.

_Oh fine, we have bigger things at hand anyhow_ Eun replied as it returned to being serious.

"Anyhow, let's go focus on helping Els-I mean the Magician!" Ara said, realizing there may be people around.

But then Aisha yelled "C'mon Ara! Let's get a move on!" from the intersection Elsword and Chung turned at a few minutes ago. Ara didn't even realize that Aisha had moved.

"WAIT FOR ME!" she replied as she ran towards Aisha to go to where the other two were.

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

"Is it okay to leave them behind?" Chung said to the silver haired vigilante ahead of him.

Elsword looked at him as he ran backwards and said "Well, I don't think Ara would be much use in a fight."

Chung pondered the idea for a moment and replied "Okay, you have a point there."

Suddenly, another explosion and following screams filled the area.

"We're almost there, let's go!" Elsword said as he turned back around and drew out his blunt sword.

They turned the corner, and saw a horrifying sight.

A good portion of the place was now cloaked in black, and some parts of the ground and buildings had been torn apart, leaving holes and craters all over the place.

But the worst of it were the bodies strewn all over the place, all unmoving and soaked in their own blood.

It was a good thing Elsword had Aisha and Ara stay behind. He wasn't sure they would be able to handle this.

And in the middle of it all, an ebony-haired man in a sort of black armor and robotic wings was choking the life out of a small girl with a claw similar to Raven's, except it was much more monstrous.

Chung was the first to move, bringing out his two guns to shoot at the man. However, the man saw the shots coming, and quickly dodged them, but he had to drop the girl in order to dodge the attack.

Elsword took advantage of this and with as much speed as he could possibly use, dashed to the child and quickly brought her to the side.

"Listen, you need to get out of here, okay?" The Magician said to the little girl.

She simply nodded in response, probably still in shock since she didn't say anything, and started to run in the opposite direction.

"Who are you!?" Chung said to the man, who then looked at the Deadly Chaser with his glowing orange eyes.

"Scanning Identity: The Deadly Chaser; Assassin for hire, target priority 3" the figure said.

Chung looked confused for a moment, but Elsword got an idea of what they were dealing with.

"Are you some sort of android or something?" Elsword asked the nasod.

The nasod looked at him and said "Scanning Identity: The Magician, vigilante, target priority 1"

The nasod then announced "Multiple targets in sight, Valak-003 switching to battle formation" as his lights on his wings suddenly began to glow blue.

Both of them had a feeling that this wasn't going to be easy.

Valak then charged towards the vigilante with amazing speed, but Elsword had a feeling he'd be attacked first, and quickly parried away the claw.

Suddenly, a sword appeared out of his other arm, which Elsword was forced to dodge as it made its horizontal arc, missing his head and hair by a few inches. He then jumped back, trying to gain some distance, but the distance didn't last for long as Valak dashed towards him.

Suddenly, Valak made a 90 degree turn, dodging the magic bullets Chung had shot in the direction Valak was originally going.

While the Chaser let out a "Tch!", Elsword already made his move. He swung his sword in a downward arc into the ground.

"TRIPLE GEYSER!" he yelled out, and three geysers burst from the ground in front of his sword. The last one managed to hit Valak, sending him up into the air.

Chung then quickly aimed his cannon right as Valak's ascent slowed down, and fired a heavy shot meant to tear him to shreds.

However, fire burst out of the nasod's feet as it flew and dodged the cannonball.

"Guess those wings aren't just for show." Elsword said as he jumped back to Chung.

Chung then replied "Yeah, this is gonna be more difficult than I thought."

The nasod looked at them from the air as it spoke "Activating Boost Sequence 2" and blue flames started to burst from the two large blue lights on his wings.

"Ah crap, this isn't good" Elsword said before he started to draw a wind rune.

The nasod then flew towards them at high speed, its claw aimed right for the blonde's face.

_CRAP! He's going for Chung!_ Elsword thought as he tried to move towards Chung to move him out of the way.

Suddenly, a Lightning Bolt hit Valak from his side, sending him flying into a nearby building.

"You guys okay?" Aisha asked them as she ran to them.

"Didn't I tell you guys not to come!" Elsword said, annoyed she ignored his warning. "And where's Ara? Is she somewhere safe?"

Aisha then started to say "Wel-"

"FLYING KITE!"

Valak then flew back towards the group and crashed into the ground. Ara then walked out from the building, her fox tails and white hair giving off a soft white glow.

Chung stood there slightly surprised while The Magician simply said "Okay, I take back what I said earlier…" and Chung could only nod in agreement.

Ara then looked at them and said "C'mon! Let's do this together!"

That and the smile on Aisha's face lifted Elsword's and Chung's spirits.

"Right!" he said as they dashed towards the now getting up Valak.

As he got up, he quickly swung out his claw towards Elsword, but he quickly dodged the attack, his speed doubled by the wind rune, and threw an explosive fist into the machine's gullet.

Valak staggered back a little, but pulled up his sword in time to block Ara's spear as she came from above. But then he was thrown to the side as a cannonball hit his side. He then saw he was right in the path of the purplette, who had gathered a high amount of magical energy.

"Lightni-" Aisha said as she got ready to cast her spell.

But she wasn't quick enough. Valak pointed the palm of his hand towards her and fired a ball of energy at the mage.

Elsword barely managed to reach her on time, quickly grabbing her in his arms. But the ball of energy hit the building behind them and exploded, sending them flying to the side.

"Elsword! Aisha!" Chung and Ara yelled in panic.

"We're fine! Keep pushing him!" Elsword said with a cough. He looked at his hand to notice he coughed a little bit of blood on it.

"Elsword! Are you okay!?" Aisha said with worry in her voice.

Elsword simply smiled as he put her down. He then replied "I'm fine, as long as you're okay."

Aisha looked at him, slightly worried "Els…"

Valak then came flying back towards him, launched back by Ara's spear.

"Elsword! Finish it!" Chung yelled to him.

"I hear you loud and clear!" he said, gripping his sword with both of his hands.

Valak then saw his target, and prepared his own sword, ready to strike Elsword down.

"Elsword!" Aisha and Ara both yelled in fear.

"Unlimited…" The Magician began to yell out.

Valak swung down his blade, his sword aimed to cut Elsword in two from his shoulder to his waist.

"BLADE!" he yelled. Suddenly, his sword glowed in magic power in response to his magic.

He then almost instantaneously swung it at the nasod's blade, slicing not only the sword, but the arm that held it into pieces. But it wasn't over yet, he continued slashing at the nasod, the blade fast enough that the others could barely see his slashes.

The nasod cried out in surprise as the blade cut deep into his build. Though a single one of the strikes didn't go through him entirely, he knew it was over. The barrage of bladed attacks was too much for his armor and exoskeleton to handle.

He was sliced into pieces, much to the others' shock. But even more surprising was how the blade Elsword had used to do so broke in two, the other piece flying off into the distance.

As Valak's head fell onto the ground, he muttered out "…Target…has exceeded…parameterrrrrr" before his eyes darkened.

Elsword looked at the nasod and sighed in relief. After a moment, Chung realized _He must have been holding back against me. Is it because he doesn't like killing?_

"Elsword!" Ara yelled out as she ran towards him, giving him a big hug.

Elsword cringed a little as he said "Ara, I'm kinda injured here."

"But I thought you were gonna die!" she said with tears on her face.

Aisha couldn't help but watch the spectacle with a smile. _I'll let you hug him this time_ she thought. Even she was worried he wasn't going to make it out of that one.

Suddenly, Elsword pushed Ara away, much to everyone's surprise.

"AISHA!" he cried out as he ran towards her.

She then started to turn around, seeing Valak behind her, holding up his claw which was now crackling with electricity.

She couldn't react, there wasn't enough time.

Elsword pushed his to the side right as Valak blasted the electricity out towards them.

_ZZZAAAAPPPPP!_

"DDDDDDAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!" he cried out in pain as thousands of volts flooded his body.

"ELSWORD!" they all cried out as the boy fell to the ground.

_How in the heck? I thought Elsword destroyed him!_ Chung thought. He then looked towards the wreckage and saw the head of the nasod eslword cut to pieces still there.

Then the answer came to him.

"_Multiple targets in sight, Valak-003 switching to battle formation"_

There was more than one Valak.

Suddenly, the sound of metal landing on the ground behind him caught his notice. He looked around to see another Valak had just arrived.

Soon enough, more arrived at the scene, slowly surrounding the team.

"Lady El…" Ara said in shock.

"So many….and we only beat one…" Chung thought. For the first time in a long time, he felt fear.

Meanwhile, Aisha was by Elsword's side, pushing him and yelling "Get up! Please get up Els!" though he didn't move.

The Valak that hit him spoke "Detecting signs of breathing from priority target 1. Preparing to finish target."

"Elsword! Please!" Aisha cried out.

"Aisha! Run!" Chung yelled as the Nasod began to pull out its sword.

However, the machine stopped moving. For a few moments, it didn't register to the group. But then the nasod's head fell from its body, which crumpled in suit, revealing a certain police officer had just cut it down.

"Lowe!" Chung said with hope back on his face. He had only met the guy once, but he was glad to see him.

"Get out of here! I'll hold them off!" the informant yelled before quickly taking out another Valak.

"Priority Target Beta sighted! Priority Target Beta sighted!" the Valaks called out as they rushed towards the officer.

"Not today, Black Arms." He said before jumping up into the air. He then gripped his sword and put magic energy into it, causing it to increase in size. He followed the enhancement with a quick somersault, slicing clean through the Valaks in front and behind him. As he landed, he then quickly made a horizontal slash as he turned, cutting down the remaining Valaks that rushed him.

"Amazing." Ara said in awe.

Lowe then walked up to them his sword by his side.

"Low-" Chung began to say, until the sword in the informant's hand went right by the blonde's hair. He then turned his head for a moment to see Lowe had embedded the end of his sword in the cranium of a Valak that snuck behind Chung.

_Am I really that out of it? _Chung thought to himself, surprised he didn't even notice its presence or sound.

Lowe then yelled at them "I said run! There's an entrance to the sewers not far from here! It's your best chance to stay alive! Now go!" before running towards the next group of the nasod swarm.

Chung then snapped out of it and yelled "Guys! Let's go! We don't have much time!"

Ara reacted, saying "R-right!" before running towards the area Lowe pointed to.

Aisha didn't move from Elsword's side, so Chung grumbled "C'mon Aisha!" before deciding to just pick up both his friend and the purplette, who was surprised by the sudden pick-up, and then rushed to the area Ara was running towards.

"Priority Targets 1 and 3 escaping, pursue the targets!" a group of the Valaks said, flying towards the escapees. However, Lowe moved in front of them and cut them all into pieces.

As he landed, he looked straight towards the horde and said "If you're going to kill them, you'll have to go through me first!"

The Valaks looked at him, scanning the enemy that stood in their way.

One of the Valaks walked forward, though unlike the rest, his wings glowed a bright orange instead of blue. He then spoke "Calculation complete, best course of action is to destroy the larger threat. Switching targets."

"Tch, I'm guessing you must be the Alpha wolf or something." Lowe grumbled, forming a stance to prepare himself.

The said Valak then spoke "You are correct, I am Valak Alpha, created by Master Wally to bring an end to the world of light."

Lowe then got a grin on his face as he said "Wow, didn't think a bucket of bolts like you could speak without some annoying calculation."

Alpha then retorted "Do not underestimate the nasods of Black Arms, Lowe Fernandez"

He then swung down his hand, signaling for the horde to attack the single man.

The nasods came at the warrior from all sides. Lowe responded to their attack with a series of slashes with the giant magical blade, destroying enough of them to make an opening.

He then rolled through the opening and tossed a grenade into the group. At first, the Valaks didn't notice it, then they suddenly picked up on the energy that came from it and looked toward the tiny ball.

It exploded into a brilliant white and black light, which became a sphere large enough to swallow the group of Valaks that attacked him. By the time the light faded, all that was left was a smooth crater in the ground.

_Well, guess it came in use after all, Wolfen_ Lowe thought, remembering how that man gave him supplies such as that grenade before he left.

But it wasn't over yet, more Valaks appeared on the scene and charged towards him. He fought each and every one of them, using the sword in his hand and a multitude of tools his friend had given him back then.

However, it wasn't long before the tables turned. It seemed that Lowe had a chance of winning until one of the Valak's stabbed him in his left arm.

Lowe reacted to it by quickly decapitating the Valak who did so and pulled out the sword.

"This one is stronger than expected." Alpha spoke, jumping down from the ledge he stood on and onto the battleground floor.

Lowe turned to face his new opponent, his eyes full of resolve.

"What's this? You foot soldiers can't kill one man?" a voice mocked from behind Lowe.

He turned around only to be too late.

The last thing he saw was a man with white hair and a lab coat, with a set of floating devices in front of him. Then everything turned into a bright purple light.

"Kekek! What a joke! And we came all this way because of him! Kekekekekek!" the white haired man said as the light faded, revealing a headless corpse lying on the ground.

* * *

**Chung: Holy crap…you killed off Lowe**

**Ara: That's so horrible! WHY!?**

**WVH: It's called motivation. Do you even watch anime?**

**Aisha: Elsword….**

**Chung: Don't worry Aisha, he can't kill off the main character. He has protagonist protection!**

**Aisha: R-really?**

**Raven: Uh, Death Note?**

**Aisha: …**

**Ara and Chung: *glare at Raven***

**Rena: Calm down guys! He said there will be a season two, so I don't think he'll kill off Elsword right now!**

**WVH: Dangit Rena! You messed with my trolling!**

**Aisha, Chung, Ara, and Raven: *glare at WVH***

**WVH: eheheheh…well, don't forget to R&amp;R everyone!**

**Eve: Come here WVH for your punishment.**

**WVH: Well, I gotta go, see you all next time! *runs away from the now angry mob of characters***


	19. Chapter 20: The Mad Scientist

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**The Battle of Velder has begun! With Elsword currently down for the moment and Lowe now dead, Elsword and his friends be able to make it through this, or will Black Arms have their way? And how long will it take me to write the next chapter?**

* * *

_Downtown near Raven's House, City Of Velder, 7:20 am_

"Sheesh there's no end to these things!" Edan complained after pulling his sword out of a Valak.

"Uh, a little help here?" Raven said as he parried off the blade of another Valak.

Then, an arrow shot past his head and right into the nasod's head, causing it to fall. Rena knocked another arrow in her bow as she said "Don't worry Raven! I'll cover you!"

She then looked behind her to see her silverette friend Eve, who was apparently blasting holes into every single Valak unit that tried to flank them and said "Eve got the rear covered, so I can do support!"

Edan looked back to Raven with a smirk on his face and told Raven "My oh my, you get around quite a lot, don't you little brother?"

Raven punched the Valak next to him in the face with unnecessary force as he yelled "Don't get the wrong idea you sadist!" which only made Edan laugh.

After he stopped laughing, he muttered "Well, at least I know now that you have good, yet slightly scary, friends" before cutting down another Valak.

It had all started just only half an hour ago. Raven and Rena were walking to school, and happened to be joined by Eve, when the Valaks came out of nowhere and tried to attack them. Though their initial attack was cut off by Edan, who swore he wasn't stalking them to school before going to work, but it wasn't long before more of them showed up.

Now, half of the police force, Edan, Raven, Rena, and Eve were fighting off the Valaks that came their way.

Edan looked back at thr group, seeing his little brother and his friends fighting against the nasods.

"_You should get out of here, now!" Edan said to the teenagers._

_While Rena looked slightly hesitant, Raven said "No."_

_Edan looked at him and ordered "I said leave! You kids shouldn't be on the battlefield!"_

_Raven looked at him and yelled "Well maybe I'm tired of being on the sidelines!"_

_The two brothers stared at each other for a few moments, neither of them willing to back down._

"_Look out!" Rena yelled, causing the brothers to notice the Valak dashing at them from the side._

_Though it didn't get the chance to get close as a laser beam pierced through its body, causing what remained to be tossed down the street._

_The two looked towards where the shot came from, seeing Eve and her two drones, her palm still slightly glowing._

"_I believe if we stay here, we have an 85% higher chance of surviving. Is that reason enough for us to stay here?" The nasod girl said, her head tilted slightly to the side._

_Edan looked in shock for a moment, but then gave in, telling them "Fine, just don't die on me, okay?"_

Edan couldn't help but smile as he thought _He did find some good friends, didn't he?_ before stabbing his blade behind him to destroy another Valak unit.

Rena shot out another arrow before she saw an opportunity to talk to the boy in front of her. She then ran up to Raven and asked him "You think the others will be okay?"

He lit a small smile on his face as he replied "They'll be fine, if Elsword's with them, I'm sure they'll be able to make it out!"

Rena couldn't help but smile at his comment. Raven was right. If anyone, Elsword could probably beat these things.

"Alright! Let's get back to beating these pieces of scrapmetal!" she yelled out, causing all of the police officers with them to cheer as well, though Raven wasn't sure if it was because they were hanging through, or if it came out from his girlfriend who happened to have, in his brother's words, big boobs.

"Well well well! What do we have here?" a voice yelled out from the rear.

Eve prepared to aim a laser towards the voice, but as a figure stepped out of the shadows, her eyes widened, not in shock, but in fear. She then took a step back.

Rena then went to her and said "Eve! What's wrong! Are you okay?"

The figure walked closer towards them, revealing a man with white hair put into a ponytail. He wore a white lab coat and was followed by a set of floating devices that had a pale purple glow.

"A-Add K-K-Kim. W-Why is he h-h-here?" Eve stuttered. Raven could tell though. If Eve was human right now, she'd be in a state of cold sweat. Whoever this guy was, he was bad news.

Add then squinted his eyes for a moment as he recognized her voice, and then clapped his hands in pleasure.

"Well this is a surprise! I expected the police to be here, but to see my old test subject is quite amusing! Kekekek!" he announced with a twisted smile on his face.

"Test subject?" Rena said, slightly confused. However, Raven had a pretty good feeling of what the scientist was saying.

"Were you the reason she lost her emotions?" Raven said, getting himself ready to fight the albino.

The scientist laughed as he replied "Well, a perfect machine shouldn't be hampered by emotion, so why would I let such a beautiful piece of technology keep them? It would be a was-"

However, he was cut off as an arrow whistled past his head. Rena glared at him as she asked "What gives you the right to decide something like that?"

Add looked at her and with his own glare, replied "Because, Eve is my property. She isn't human, she is a machine that belongs to me. Just like these dynamos. That simple."

While it looked like Rena was about to snap, Raven moved first, his nasod fist already inches away from the white-hair's face.

However, his punch didn't make contact as the man simply dodged to the side. Raven then aimed his claw to shred him with a horizontal cut. But this time, the man dodged by literally flipping in the air, his feet somehow supported by the dynamos that were lit with purple sparks.

"Oh, that's an interesting arm you got there." Add commented with a whistle.

The man then quickly flipped backwards, dodging the incoming arrows shot by the elf.

"Raven!" Edan yelled out, ready to help the group, but then suddenly a large group of Valaks surrounded the chief, forcing him to fight them instead.

"We got this Edan, just worry about yourself!" Raven yelled to his brother in reply.

After he landed, he then shrugged as he said "Kekekek, so think you can double team me, eh? This'll be fun!"

He then dashed towards them while hovering in mid-air. Rena notched an arrow to fire at him, but just as she got her aim, the albino suddenly vanished from her sight.

Then she felt his presence behind her a second too late.

"Too slow." He said with a mad smile on his face, his leg mid-swing, ready to kick her down the street.

But it didn't reach her. For Raven's claw blocked the kick. While it was clear Raven had a little bit of a hard time blocking it from the expression on his face, he managed to stop the attack.

He then looked at Add, his eyes holding the same expression as when he fought Ran.

"Try that again, and I'll kill you." He announced with a look of menace on his face.

Add looked at the dark-haired boy and laughed, confusing Raven slightly.

"Now I really want to take a closer look at that arm of yours! KAHAHAHA!" he replied before he sent a disc made of his dynamos flying towards Raven's face. Raven jumped to the side to dodge it, grabbing Rena along the way to pull her away from the attack.

But just as it seemed they were safe, Raven saw the disc coming back towards him.

_Is it homing or something? _He thought before he got ready to dodge. But just before he moved, he noticed that not only Rena was in the line of fire, but Eve as well, and she was still trembling in fear. The sight of Add had brought back many painful memories from what he could guess.

"DAMMIT!" He yelled before throwing a punch towards the disc of purple energy. The only way they could get out of this all alive was if Raven blocked the disc with his strongest punch.

The only thing he feared now was whether or not his arm could withstand it.

As he threw his punch, the disc flew closer and closer, fast enough to be equal to the speed of a speeding car.

But just as it seemed he was going to block it, a smile came across Add's face.

"DON'T TOUCH IT!" Eve cried out, finally out of her catatonic state, but it was already too late.

The second it touched the edge of Raven's fist, an electrical shock suddenly pulsed from the disk. And his arm only made the pain worse, causing him to scream.

Rena cried out "RAVEN!" as the electricity dispersed. Eve then looked towards the scientist, who simply nodded while stroking his chin.

"Quite an impressive piece of technology, it was able to withstand a high frequency EMP. Though the host is a little bit lacking." He said to himself, clearly pleased with his little test.

"ADD!" Eve yelled in anger, sending lasers towards the scientist.

"Kek" he laughed before blocking her attack with a disc similar to the one he hit Raven with. "You do realize I'm the one who implemented laser technology into your body, right?"

Eve gave him a glare, full of furious rage, which surprised Add.

Add looked at her with an annoyed look on his face as he said "You should not have emotions, Eve. And even more annoying, you even dare to rebel your master?"

Eve then yelled "All you did was use my body and technology of the nasods I preserved for your own selfish gain! There is no way in any hell I'd call you master!" which even shocked Rena, considering she had never seen Eve with so much emotion on her face.

"Well, then, we'll see about that…" he said as he lowered his head. But then a sneer formed on his face.

"But first…I'll be taking that arm!" he spoke before blasting away Rena from Raven with a sphere of energy.

"ADD!" Eve yelled in defiance before shooting more lasers at the albino, but all of them were blocked by the dynamo discs.

Add then kneeled next to Raven as he began to say "Well, I'll be taking-"

But then, Add felt a sudden and indescribable wave of bloodlust wash over him.

He then quickly dodged to the side, dodging the slash of a sword, which scarred one of the walls of one of the buildings next to Raven.

The person holding that sword was none other than Edan, and he looked at Add with the same menacing look Raven showed the albino, except there was a clear bit of bloodlust in the air.

"Touch him again, and you're dead, Kim" he growled, his sword poised at the albino.

Add laughed as he replied "Oh darn, I thought those Valaks I sent your way would keep you occupied a while longer."

"If you really think those piles of scrap metal can stop me from protecting the last of my family, you're dead wrong…" Edan retorted, his gaze not moving from his opponent.

"Is that so? Kekekekek, this ought to be fun." Add replied, his insane sneer filled with excitement.

However, Add's expression suddenly changed. He then put his finger to what seemed to be an earpiece and said "What? But I have one of the top priority targets here!"

He then let out a "Tch!" in annoyance from the answer on the other end.

"Don't think I'll let you get away!" Edan yelled, his movement almost invisible as he made a piercing attack.

However, Add dodged it with ease as he flew up into the air, though he was a little surprised at the fact the end of the sword went through the stone wall that was behind the albino just a few moments before.

"Well, I'd love to stay, but I got things to do." The scientist replied before flying away.

"Tch!" Edan let out before taking a breath. He then rushed over to Raven, next to the elf who was already kneeling over him.

"Raven…" Rena muttered as tears fell down her face. "It's my fault…you could have dodged it if-"

Edan patted her on the shoulder with a smile as he said "Don't worry, he's just an idiot at times. Thinks he should take the fall instead. Forgets to take care of himself."

Rena let out a small smile as she replied "R-right"

Meanwhile Eve looked up at the sky, her expression back to normal, towards where Add flew and thought _I need to stop looking back at the past…_

She then looked towards the others, who were carefully picking up Raven so they could get him to safety.

_Otherwise…my friends will only get hurt…_

"C'mon Eve! We need to get out of here!" Rena yelled at her from a little bit down the street.

"R-right!" Eve replied, running over towards the rest of the group.

_Please be okay, Chung and Elsword_ she thought as she joined the trio.

* * *

_Meanwhile, in the sewers below Velder…_

Chung looked around the corner to look down the sewer tunnel to the left, which to him, looked pretty much just like every other tunnel they passed through. He let out a breath of relief, considering they had managed to get away from the hordes of Valaks for a moment.

For a moment, he thought about how Lowe saved their lives, coming in at the perfect time. If it wasn't for him, they'd all be dead. But he was worried, after all they left him there all alone.

But the worry left his mind when he suddenly chocked on the air. He had nearly forgotten they were in a sewer, filled with cold, humid, damp, and musty air filled with the odor of all sorts of garbage.

"Well, if the Valaks don't kill us, the stink in here will!" he joked as he turned to the rest of the group.

Ara and Aisha were knelling next to the still unconscious Elsword. They smiled a little at the joke. Chung figured they needed this, after all, he figured they needed to lift the atmosphere a little.

"Yeah, maybe" Aisha replied to his joke. She needed it. After all, Elsword nearly died in front of her. And while Chung was worried, he could tell Aisha really, REALLY cared.

_Bet if Rena heard that, she'd be squealing right now_ he thought to himself.

Ara suddenly started to doze off for a second, but quickly snapped out of it.

Aisha looked at her and asked "You okay?"

Ara nodded a little and said "I'm fine…it's just I get exhausted whenever I use Eun's power…" before she started to nod off again.

Chung looked at her and said to the two "How about you two take a break and keep an eye on Els while I scout ahead."

Aisha nodded in approval as she spoke "Good idea. I was getting a little tired of walking around aimlessly anyhow."

While Chung got the gist of Aisha's joke, Ara simply stretched as she let out a yawn and said "Okay, see you when you get…" before falling asleep with her head propped up on the wall, her hair color suddenly turning to its normal black hue as she fell asleep.

"Well, be back in 5 minutes, holler if you need anything." Chung replied before heading down the passage. Aisha then looked at the ebony hair girl propped up on the wall. She couldn't help but think _Wow…she looks like a little kid when she's asleep_.

She then decided to poke her to check and see if she was awake in any way at all. She sleeping girl simply muttered "Onii-chan…stop teasing me…" before shifting herself to the side.

Aisha let out a soft smile. Despite the fact Aisha was jealous of her 'jugs' and annoyed at her interest in Elsword, she couldn't help but think of her as a younger sister.

_Guess I see why Noel likes to do this stuff sometimes_ she thought with a giggle. She then looked up and thought _I hope she's okay…_

But then she remembered the last time she saw her older sister fight, when almost every enemy in her older sister's path was frozen solid and shattered into millions of itty bits and pieces.

She then thought _Nevermind…if anything, she's probably making those Valaks run for their lives_.

She then looked at Elsword. His hair was once again the brilliant crimson she had seen in his eyes when he saved her life, which to her now seemed so long ago.

She started to brush his hair, but stopped herself as she thought _WHAT AM I DOING!?_

But after a moment, she started to do it again, deciding _...Well, it's not like anyone is watching_.

As she brushed his hair, the sound of Elsword's breathing suddenly slowed to a near halt.

She looked for a moment, and slowly came to realize what might be going on.

She then quickly checked his heart rate, which was starting to grow faint, but was still there.

_Could he be choking on his blood?_ Aisha thought in panic.

She tried to think. _WHAT DO I DO? WHAT DO I D-_

But then the realization came to her.

She needed to do CPR.

Her mind suddenly went a mile a minute in panic.

_BUT CPR MEANS I HAVE TO KISS HIM! BUT IF I DON'T HE'LL DIE!_

After a few moments of internal conflict, Aisha steeled herself with the thought _I'm paying him back for when he saved my life. Yeah, sounds perfect!_

She then bent down in front of him and patted his chest in a bit. The boy showed no real change. Aisha took a breath of relief for a moment as she thought _I guess his wounds healed quick…but he's still chocking, so I have to…_

She then brought her face close to his, and couldn't help but blush.

_Just do it and get it over with already!_ She thought.

She then closed her eyes and forced her mouth onto his and gave him a quick bit of oxygen. She removed her mouth from his, her face now pink.

_Okay, I'll just have to do it again!_ She thought as she pushed onto Rune's chest once more. He started to show faint signs of coughing, but Aisha could tell she would have to put her mouth on his once more.

She then closed her eyes and gave him the breath of life once more, and could tell it worked when she could taste the bits of dried and wet blood and feel his breathing.

But just as she pulled herself away, she saw her two other companions staring at her.

"Well…seems Aisha is a lot more aggressive than I thought" Chung said with a laugh.

"Aisha…." Ara spoke, her voice clearly that of jealous rage.

"I WAS JUST GIVING HIM CPR! HE WAS CHOKING, OKAY!?" she explained in embarrassment, her face now as red as Elsword's hair.

"Sure, whatever excuse you need." Chung said while letting out a giggle to the side.

"Then I'll give him CPR too!" Ara announced.

"WHAT!?" Aisha replied.

"Why not? It's only fair!" Ara said as she moved over to Elsword's side.

"But doing that again will open his wounds!" Aisha retorted, though it was clear she didn't want anyone else to kiss him, even if she didn't know it herself.

"Didn't stop you now did it!?" Ara explained, which quite literally put a hole into Aisha's reason why Ara shouldn't give the redhead CPR.

"I…uh…uh" Aisha tried to reply, but the words didn't come to her. It was clear she was defeated in this matter.

"Ugh…what the?" Elsword suddenly muttered, his eyelids starting to flicker open.

The group suddenly looked at Elsword, but with a bit of surprise.

"You're awake already!?" Ara said in shock, with a tinge of disappointment.

"Well, he always did recover fast." Aisha thought out loud.

"How would you know that!?" Ara asked Aisha, clearly suspicious of how she knew.

"I gave him treatment when he got hurt one time. That simple." Aisha explained.

Elsword then tried to but in saying "Uhh…can someone explain-"

"Wait! SO DOES THAT MEAN YOU SAW HIS-" Ara cut off Elsword.

Aisha's face turned as red as a strawberry as she argued "NO! IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"

Elsword looked at Chung, who was now on the floor laughing. He looked at the two girls and the laughing blonde for a few moments and then noticed the little bit of blood on his lips…and on Aisha's.

"Wow, didn't think you were that assertive Aisha" he joked, which made Chung laugh even harder.

"I SAID IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" Aisha yelled, clearly flustered.

"SAYS THE GRAPE WHO KISSED HIM WHILE HE WAS UNCONSCIOUS!" Ara yelled at Aisha.

Soon enough, the two of them continued to argue at one another, filling the sewers with the sounds of their bickering, and the blonde boy's laughter.

Elsword couldn't help but laugh a little, but not wholeheartedly.

While he was unconscious, he had the nightmare of Elesis' death again.

Only this time, it was a lot more vivid.

_Why now? Is it because of Black Arms?_ He thought to himself. However, he snapped out of it as the two girls started to fight.

"Okay you two, calm down."

* * *

**Elsword: That was too close…**

**Rena: Yeah, for both of us…so Aisha-**

**Aisha: I SAID IT ISN'T LIKE THAT!**

**Chung &amp; Elsword : Sure….**

**Aisha: SHUT UP!**

**Ara: Grrrr...**

**Eve: This was in my expected parameters…**

**Chung: And why's that?**

**Eve: There's always a high chance for the first character that is the opposite gender of the main character to be romantically involved with the main character.**

**Chung: Good point**

**Rena: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE-**

**Aisha: Why me? Q_Q**

**Ara: Why NOT me!?**

**Edan: meh, you'll probably get your chance. Also WVH, am I getting any more action anytime soon? Like a 1 on 1 fight with Add?**

**WVH: …uh…well…**

**Edan: …you better say yes…**

**WVH: Well! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Please remember to R&amp;R!**

**Edan: Wait just a sec-**

**WVH: And note next up is the DC story for Elsword: RSFB Stories! So hope you enjoy that!**

**Edan: Don't…you…dar-**


	20. Chapter 21: Alliance

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**And we are finally back to The Magician! This is the beginning of the season finale, so get ready for a crapton, a CRAPTON, of action. So I hope everyone enjoys the next 5 chapters. And don't worry, there will be a season 2! So sit back and enjoy the show!**

* * *

_Throne Room, Velder Palace, City of Velder, 7:45 am_

"Hold that door men! For his majesty!" a commander in white garbs ordered his men who were all holding the door between the main hall and the throne room.

Almost the entire palace had been taken. The swarm of Valaks had been sudden, but after regrouping, the guards were able to set up blockades to slow down the nasods.

However, not even that lasted long. Now the last obstacle between Black Arms and the throne room was the door that the soldiers were pushing back with all their might.

The commander in the middle of the door then continued to rally his men as he yelled "Just a little longer men! I'm sure reinforcements will-"

However, the door was suddenly blown away by a flash of purple light, the men crushed as the doors hit the wall behind the seat of monarchy.

Suddenly, the dust suddenly dispersed, revealing Add Kim was the one who blew a hole into the chamber.

A man then walked in front of him. It was a man with grey hair as well as a moustache.

Suddenly a bit of rubble moved from the left, revealing one of the soldiers leaning on the wall on their left.

The man opened his eyes in shock as he stuttered "W-wally? The forsaken kin-"

But the soldier didn't get the chance to finish his sentence, as a claw suddenly pierced his head, killing the man instantaneously.

"You will not address Master Wally in such a disrespectful manner." Alpha said as he pulled his claw out of the remains of the soldier's head.

"Relax Alpha, it's not like he would have lived much longer anyway, kekekekek" Add spoke mockingly to the nasod.

"Unlike you, I do not have the emotions of a sadist, Add Kim." Alpha responded.

Add sneered as he retorted "Ku, I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Wally then put his hand out to signal the two to stop, much to Add's annoyance.

"Alpha, scan the room. I'm sure the cowards must be hiding in here somewhere." Wally ordered his creation.

"Yes sir!" the nasod responded as he began scanning the room, looking all across the chamber.

After a minute, the nasod then reported "There is no signs of the monarchy in this room sir."

Wally then yelled "WHAT? CHECK YOUR SCANNER! THERE ARE NO OTHER SIGNS OF THEM IN THE PALACE! THIS IS THE LAST PLACE THEY COULD HIDE IN THE PALACE!" in frustration.

Alpha then added "Apparently, there is a flow of air coming from the curtain next to the throne."

Add then flew over to the curtain of the side of the throne and pulled it to the side. It revealed a hidden staircase, with torches now dim.

Alpha then scanned the entrance of the hidden passage and then reported "According to my pheromone scanner, Omega Targets used this passage about 4 hours ago."

Wally then hit the side of the wall as he complained "DAMN! Seems they knew about the attack."

He then walked over to the throne and almost instinctively sat on the chair. It had been over 3 years since he last sat in a seat of power like this.

While it calmed him, it also made his rage boil as well. After all, it was due to one man that he lost his status as a king in Elder.

He then asked the black nasod "What is the status of Target Beta?"

Before Alpha could speak, Add butted into the conversation as he reported "I took care of that myself. Blew off the coward's head."

Though Alpha was annoyed, he then added "It is as he speaks sir, he eliminated the target while the target was fighting the soldiers. He took out at least 201 of our units before execution."

Wally looked slightly impressed as he replied "Well, that is quite unexpected, but we still have another two thousand units in reserve on the outskirts."

Alpha then bowed and looked up at his master as he praised "Of course sir, it was indeed a bright decision to keep the main force on standby."

Wally then clutched his fist as he said "I would have enjoyed seeing the royal family die in agony, but it seems they were tipped off. That traitor must have done so when your units lost sight of him."

Alpha then bowed his head to the floor as he replied "Forgive us sir, he gave us more trouble than we estimated."

Wally let out a sigh as he spoke "No matter. After all, the brat got the punishment he deserved. Death."

He then stood up, the elevation due to the steps of the throne pedestal making him tower over his subordinates.

"Your current orders are as such: capture or eliminate all targets 1 through 5. And if Target Alpha is sighted, show that black mongrel no mercy." He ordered the two.

Both of them responded with a "Yes sir", though it was clear Add was annoyed.

"I could have killed them already…" He muttered as he left the chamber.

Just before Valak was about to follow suit, Wally sudden called out to him.

"Alpha, is the new unit here yet?" he asked the machine.

Alpha then turned around as he reported "It should be here shortly. It is currently in its capsule in order to avoid detection."

Wally then spoke "Make sure it gets here soon. If that bastard who destroyed my reign in Elder does come, we may need her."

Valak then replied "Yes my lord." before opening a communication channel between him and the transport team in charge of the said unit.

* * *

_Temporary Velder Army HQ, Market District, City of Velder, Same Time_

With the city in shambles, the remaining armed forces of the city were now stationed in a temporary camp in a plaza on the Southern outskirts of the city. Other than the few small buildings, the area was filled with tents all over the place, as well as the soldiers using the camp. While many of them were unscathed, the injured were equal in number, and even more including the citizens who managed to escape the chaos.

In one of the tents stationed on the road, Raven rested on one of the beds, occasionally reeling in pain. Rena stood next to the bed, holding his human hand as he slept.

"It's my fault…" Rena said under her breath.

Eve let out a sigh before saying "I told Rena, it's not your fault. I should have acted sooner. I should have taken you out of there."

"Eve…" Rena replied as she turned towards the nasod girl, her eyes puffy from her tears.

After a moment of silence, Raven began to grunt in pain once again, turning their attention back towards him.

"Raven…" Rena spoke with worry.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a large tent not that far from theirs, Edan stood with a group of people next to a table that had a large map on it, marked to represent their current situation. With him was Velder Academy's Math Teacher Vanessa; who was actually the former head of the Velder Knights before retiring two years ago, Head of the Velder Knights Noel Vindir; who was newly promoted to her position due to the loss of their former commander, and other high ranking members of the remaining forces.

Vanessa opened up the discussion as she explained "The current state of affairs is dire" before using a stick to point at the Velder Palace on the map.

"According to our knowledge, the enemy has likely taken the palace. Anyone on our side that was in there have probably been killed in battle already." She continued, with a bit of remorse in her voice.

Edan let out a sigh as he commented "Well, I guess it was the right move to have His Highness and family to escape through the hidden passage."

Noel replied to the comment with a bit of surprise "Wait? There's a hidden passage in the Palace? Couldn't the enemy follow them?"

Vanessa then explained "Yes, but the passage has a mechanism that causes the way to collapse. And if you're wondering Miss Vindir, you weren't told since it's on a need to know basis."

For a moment, it seemed Noel would object, but she sighed before submitting defeat, speaking "I guess you have a point."

With Edan clearing his throat, Vanessa then turned her attention back to the board.

"Now, we do have one piece of information that might turn this battle." She said before pointing at the palace once again.

"From what we know, their commander is currently in the palace and has made it his base of operations." She explained.

Edan then stroked his chin as he responded "Ah, that's good to know. After all, they don't know all of the ways in and out of the palace yet."

Vanessa then replied "Quite. Now, we need a strategy to do three things: protect this camp, infiltrate the castle to capture the commander, and track down their captains."

She then announced "I want all of you to take a short break and think of some ideas. Dismissed!"

Noel then whispered to Edan "So, think we have a chance?"

Edan looked up as he pondered for a moment before replying "Any way I see it, it isn't impossible. Hard, but not impossible."

"I see…" Noel responded to his analysis, her left hand fidgeting a little.

Edan actually knew what it meant, considering he used to do it many times before.

"Worried about a member of your family?"

Noel turned to look at him in the eye, slightly embarrassed.

"Yes…a little sister. She's a friend of that elf you brought with you earlier." She explained.

Edan nodded and patted her shoulder as he replied "I see. Something tells me she's in good hands though." before walking out of the tent, leaving Noel slightly confused.

As he walked out, one of his lieutenants ran up to him with a clipboard in his hand.

"SIR!" the officer said as he saluted to the chief. He then held the clipboard out to Edan as he spoke "Here is the casualty report you wanted sir!"

Edan took the report from the man's hands as he told him "Thank you. Now, go on standby."

As the officer saluted and walked away towards the rest of the camp, Edan was already scanning the list of casualties.

_We lost so many…_he thought as he looked at all the names.

Then his face changed as he saw a name on the list he recognized.

_Lowe Fernandez: KIA_

Edan let out a sigh of remorse as he thought _I guess you didn't make it after all…_

Suddenly, a loud, and highly annoying, squeal came from the tent his little brother was resting in.

"Oh what now!?" he complained as he ran over to see the commotion.

* * *

_A few minutes earlier_

After Raven finally calmed down and slept soundly again, Rena turned towards the nasod behind her.

It has recently come to her she knew nothing about the silverette she knew as Eve. Only a week ago she learned that she had been experimented on by the group Wally, the now-former king of elder, associated with. And recently, Rena had learned that there was some sort of connection between her and that white-haired scientist named Add Kim.

She let out a sigh before asking "Eve, just who was the guy from earlier? He said he was your master and other things…"

Eve closed her eyes for a moment and spoke "He was the one who experimented on my body and mind the most back when I was in Elder. He is the worst person, no, monster I have ever met"

Rena looked slightly shocked, but guilty as well "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stir old memories."

"It's fi-"

However, Eve was suddenly cut off as the sewer lid in the middle of the tent was pushed up, causing the rusty piece of metal to let out a screeching sound as it came off.

"Dang that was loud!" a familiar male voice spoke from the hole.

"Sorry! Let's see if-" a boy in white armor said as he poked his head out of the hole.

Rena and Eve looked at him, their faces dazed as if though they were frozen. Even the just awoken Raven had the same face.

"Oh, hey guys!" Chung said with a casual wave.

"Hi C-Chung." Eve tried to speak nonchalantly, yet it was clear there was some emotion behind her voice.

"Oh hey, is that Eve up there!?" a female voice spoke in surprise, and Rena recognized it on the spot.

"Omigosh Aisha! You're safe!" she said as she poked her head over the hole out of the sewers.

After a few moments, the four members had climbed out of the hole, somewhat drenched from the water below.

"Wow Aisha, didn't think you would get so down and dirty." Rena giggled as she tried to avoid the musty smell from entering her nostrils.

Aisha instantly turned red as she yelled "I SAID HE WAS CHOKING OKAY!?"

Rena looked surprised as she replied "Uh, I was making a joke about how you smell. What does choking have to do with it?"

Aisha then quickly recovered as she stuttered "Uh, n-nothing. Nothing at all!"

But Rena took a quick look at the other three, two of which were trying to hold a laugh, and one looking annoyed.

But more importantly, Elsword was also blushing very slightly as he tried to hold in his laughter.

It was then the lightbulb turned on in the elf's head.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" she squealed in excitement, much to Aisha's despair.

"You made out with Elsword! I can't believe how fast you're moving!" she spoke rapidly with no hint of any mistake.

"I SAID HE WAS CHOKING!" Aisha cried out in embarrassment and despair, causing the others to all start laughing, even Raven began to chuckle.

"What is going on here?" Edan said as he pushed aside the curtain with two other officers next to him.

Suddenly, there was a moment of dead silence as the two groups stared at each other. The air suddenly grew tense. After all, two 'vigilantes' were in the room, clearly dressed in their recognized garbs.

"It's the…Magician…sir…" one of the officers said.

"And that guy in white…should we?" the other spoke as his hand inched towards his sword.

Edan then lifted a hand up and said "Leave them be. At this point, they're more of an asset than a liability. Also, I want you to forget their faces. Now leave."

"Sir!" the two officers said with a salute before walking out of the room.

After a few moments, Edan let out a sigh before saying "Sorry about that. Everyone is a little tense at the moment."

Elsword laughed nervously as he replied "N-no problem…"

Edan then spoke "I'm not here to capture you. In fact, I think we can work together."

Elsword stopped laughing as the words left Edan's mouth.

"That sounds reasonable."

The rest of the group suddenly let out a breath of relief.

_For a second there, I thought it was going to turn into an all out brawl_ Aisha thought.

"I need you to help us take back our city. If you accept, I will lift any charges that you, and your friend, have at the moment." Edan explained his proposal.

Chung then asked "And if we don't?"

Edan sighed as he answered "Then you'll either be imprisoned by us or die by their hands."

For a moment, the group remained silent.

Then Elsword answered "If you accept my condition, we'll help."

Edan looked confused for a moment, but then shrugged as he asked "What is your condition?"

Elsword pulled out and looked at the handle of his broken blunt sword. He thought back to the fight he had with the Valak unit.

If he didn't fight them seriously, there would be no chance of him winning.

"I need a two edged sword that's sharp and sturdy. I can't bludgeon them with this and expect them to go down" he said with a shrug.

Edan looked at him as if he was kidding, but he could tell the boy was being serious. He then laughed for a moment and as he wiped a tear from his eye he responded "I think that's doable."

Everyone then smiled in confidence, though Chung also added "Also, you guys have any cannonballs?"

Edan smiled as he replied "I'm sure the artillery unit has a few. Said they were messing with something earlier."

He then tossed a small badge to Chung , who looked slightly confused.

"Show this to them, it should let them know you're with me for the moment. Also, Magician, I want you to meet me in the next tent in a couple minutes, got it?"

"Yeah." The white hair boy responded as he put on a spare mask.

After Edan left, as well as Chung who was going toward the tent of the artillery unit, Elsword summarized what happened with his group and Rena did the same.

As soon as they were caught up, Elsword stroked his finger to his chin as he said "Well, sounds like that Add guy is pretty tough."

"Yeah…" Raven replied, still in bed. From what the doctors told him, he wasn't going to be able to participate any longer in the battle.

Suddenly, Eve added "Next time, I want to fight him."

Rena stood up in response and complained "He's too powerful! He knows how you fight! How do you think you'll win?"

Eve then gave Rena a slightly cold stare before speaking "There is a way to beat him. I know his weakness. And I won't be alone."

Elsword smiled under his mask before saying "Yeah, if anything, Chung and I will be there to back her up. Heck, from the sounds of it, Chung might actually want to fight him."

This caused everyone in the room to smile. Even the normally emotionless Eve joined in.

Aisha then patted her hand on Elsword's shoulder as she told him "Well, how about you first check what's going on, Magician."

"Right!" he said before leaving the tent.

* * *

_A few minutes later in the Commanders' Tent…_

Vanessa looked at the white-haired boy as she looked him up and down, trying to get a better understanding of the boy.

"So, this is the famous Magician I heard so much about. To think you've had trouble with him for so long Edan. It's quite disappointing" she said as she finished sizing up the vigilante.

"Well, he is experienced at covering his tracks, and the public has a positive opinion of him." Edan replied with a smirk on his face, though the sweat on his brow was a clear sign her insult hit his pride.

"I came to help because the city I care about is in danger, okay?" The Magician said, slightly annoyed.

Vanessa let out a shrug as she said "Forgive me for the insult. I just find it fun to poke Edan's buttons."

Edan cleared his throat in attempt to switch the subject.

Vanessa then turned back towards the table in order to discuss their plan.

After taking in a deep breath, she began the briefing.

"From what we know, the commander of the invading forces is currently within the Velder Palace, and he has two captains who have been seen traversing the city. The first is one of the nasods, likely an enhanced model. And the second is a man in his early 20s with white hair and a lab coat." she explained to the group.

"If I remember right, my friends who fought him said he used these floating purple devices that generated energy and have a sort of wireless connection with his brain." Elsword said, already trying to think of counterstrategies. If anyone, he was likely to be a threat in this operation.

Vanessa had a similar look on her face as well as she replied "Is that so? It will probably be a good idea to avoid him then until the enemy forces are weakened."

Edan then commented "Yes, that is a smart idea. From the vibe I got, I wouldn't be surprised if he could give me a hard time, if I went serious."

Vanessa then continued as she spoke "Aside from their captains, the enemy forces are scattered throughout the city, but they are focused around the castle."

The Magician then commented "So, we have a large enemy force surrounding the enemy stronghold while the rest are looking for targets. I'm guessing we need to use some sort of hidden passage into the castle in hopes of catching their commander off guard and force him to surrender, right?"

Everyone suddenly went silent, until Vanessa replied, with some astonishment "Yes, that is our current plan. Do you know strategy?"

Elsword continued to look at the map in front of him as he answered "Yeah, my sensei taught me things like this just in case. I'm not as good as him though."

Vanessa then asked the boy "So, what would you do?"

Elsword put his finger on his chin as he said "Well, I would have three groups. Two for assault, and one for defense. While the defending team protects the camp, the assault teams would work jointly until they reach the passage. Then they would split into a small team to sneak into the enemy base and a larger team to keep the enemy distracted outside the palace."

Vanessa considered his strategy before speaking "That actually isn't half bad. I can see why you can outwit crow hair over there."

Edan let out a "Tch!" before looking away, he was clearly annoyed by the remark.

Vanessa then looked back at the map with The Magician, and even some of the other commanders began to group around him.

"So, do you know any of the hidden passages into the palace then?" Vanessa asked as Rune pondered over the map.

The Magician smiled under his mask as he said "Yeah. Other than the one in the throne room that from what I heard is gone now, there's one I made myself, just in cas-"

Suddenly the flap of the tent opened to reveal Deadly Chaser, who had his helmet no longer on, run inside, looking like a cheery schoolboy.

"Dude! You are not gonna believe what they have in the artillery core! They were actually studying one of my dad's old projects that he never got to finish, and it turns out, I helped them finish it! Isn't that awesome!?" he said as he grabbed onto Rune's shoulders, pushing him back and forth in excitement.

"S-s-sure." The Magician replied as he started to get dizzy from being rocked around.

Noel then asked "Wait, you mean the Disfrozen project? I thought that was years from finishing!" with astonishment.

Chung's eyes then lit up as he explained "Well, I'd been looking into it for a while, and it turns out they had the last piece of the puzzle! Look!"

He then pulled out a blue glowing cylinder-like missile, his eyes in tears of joy.

For a moment, everyone simply looked in surprise. One of the commanders muttered "You got to be kidding me. They actually did it…"

And towards the back, the sounds of money exchanging hands as well as a few grumbles could be heard.

Vanessa then put her left fist into her other hand as she made a decision.

"Well, I think I have our strategy then. Now everyone listen up!" she announced before walking back towards the table before the second part of the mission briefing began.

* * *

**Elsword: Dang Chung….you are a nerd**

**Chung: I'm sorry, it's just it was something my dad had been working on for a while.**

**Elsword: …should I add Daddy's boy to that?**

**Chung: …don't make me hit you with my can-**

**Eve: *Slaps Elsword into the nearest wall* that was very disrespectful Elsword**

**Elsword: …I should have….seen that coming *goes unconscious***

**Rena: Hey Ara, you should try that 'CPR' on him now**

**Ara: MISS RENA! THAT'S WRONG!...then again**

**Aisha: What are you doing Rena?**

**Rena: Well, if you're not going to confess, I might as well give Ara a chance.**

**Ara: That's mean Rena…**

**Raven: It's how she is…she finds messing with other peoples' relationships as fun…I pity Aisha**

**Aisha: Thanks Raven!**

**Rena: Raven! That was mean!**

**Raven: What? I was speaking the truth.**

**Eve: …should I slap him?**

**WVH: Don't. Anyhow, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, the beginning of our season finale! So please remember to R&amp;R!**

**Edan: *from the other room* Oh WVH! Come out come out where ever you are you lying-**

**WVH: Well, I gotta go, see you all next time! *runs***


	21. Chapter 22: The Battle Begins

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**Sorry everyone for the long hiatus! After getting through multiple family vacations (visiting relatives at thanksgiving and X-Mas) and the typical finals crunch, I'm finally back to give you some entertainment! **

**And now, the operation begins! Will the gang be able to retake the city? Or will Black Arms prevail? Get ready, because the action begins now!**

* * *

_Streets of the Market District, City of Velder, 8:02 am_

The sky was now blanketed in a black smoke that held a tint of red from the fires raged across the city. However, the fires had begun to die down.

The initial attack of the Black Arms' army of Valaks was over. And for what seemed like an eternity, there was a sort of calm before the storm in the city. As if though the real battle was about to begin.

Suddenly, a few explosions occurred from the outmost section of the Market District, revealing the fight had begun. The Valak units in that area were now in combat with not only a contingent of the city's armed forces, but also the Magician and his friends.

The Magician had just thrown an explosive rune into one of the nasod's body from a stab wound he had inflicted on it, destroying the machine almost instantly as the explosion echoed throughout the town.

Chung had just finished another Valak unit with a single cannonball from his now enhanced cannon and went back to back with his friend.

"Sheesh! I see why you wanted an actual sword now!" Chung said with a chuckle.

Elsword responded similarly as he replied "And I see why you got so giddy about those cannonballs!"

"Focus you two!" another voice spoke from behind them. Edan was tearing theValaks apart with his blade, leaving cuts that were nearly all clean, save for a few gears that stuck out.

"Lightning Shower!" Aisha yelled out as she summoned lightning from the sky above, electrocuting the units around her. As the units fell to the ground, she couldn't help but get a smirk on her face. After all, she had just learned during the briefing that the machines were highly susceptible to large amounts of electricity of the opposite voltage.

_It worked! YES!_ She thought as she tried to keep herself from dancing. She then saw Eve coming towards her. At first Aisha thought _Is Eve that impressed!?_

"Aisha duck." Eve said.

Suddenly, Aisha quickly realized the enemies behind her, as well as the girl aiming laser beams right at them. She then quickly ducked as Eve shot holes in each of the Valaks, causing them all the crumple to the ground.

"Don't get carried away Aisha." Eve mentored Aisha before moving towards her next opponent.

Aisha let out a sigh as she said "Okay, thanks…" before she started charging up her spells to attack the next set of enemies.

Soon enough, the ground was littered with the machines, and the group had already returned to running towards their destination.

"So, think your two friends will be okay?" Edan asked the Magician with a bit of worry. The two were put on the defensive line, and more importantly, Edan had to leave his brother behind so he could recover from his fight with Add.

The Magician gave him a thumbs up as he answered "Don't worry, from what I've seen, both of them should be able to take care of themselves!"

Then Chung, who was on the other side of the Magician as they ran, added "That and they have the scariest Math Teacher in the world!"

Edan chuckled as he replied "You have a point there!"

Soon enough, the trio suddenly stopped dead in their tracks as they reached a three way intersection. Other than the way they came from, the road split into a street that led directly to the Palace Gates, and the other went towards the city's downtown.

"Looks like we made it to our first stop." Edan said as he turned towards the Magician.

"Yeah." The boy replied as he looked down both paths and above, making sure none of the Valaks were nearby.

Edan then gave him a tap on the shoulder as he said "Well, good luck kid! Just don't die out there, otherwise it'll give me more paperwork!" before he walked towards the troops he was to march towards the palace.

The Magician smiled as he said "Same to you!" before joining his friends.

It had been decided at the briefing that he, Aisha, Chung, and Eve would sneak into the palace while Edan and half of the city's remaining armed forces distract the enemy by attacking the front gate. Which left Rena, Ara, and Vanessa behind to guard the camp.

And he was content with the teaming. All he could do was hope the strategy would work.

"Alright guys! Follow me!" he said as he began to run down the remaining path of the crossroad.

"Right!" the others all replied as they followed the masked vigilante.

As they ran down the street, they saw that many of the buildings were still intact. _Must be because they were built with fire resistant materials_ Elsword thought as they passed by the structures.

Elsword then turned the next corner as he told them "Stay close! It's just around the next corner!"

Chung then suddenly spoke "Wait, isn't your old apartment building in that area?"

Elsword nodded his head as he replied "Yeah, the entrance is i-GET DOWN!"

He then swiftly knocked down the group with a sweep kick. And barely in time, as a blast of purple light went over their heads, its heat had burned the tips their hair slightly, but it also blown away Chung's hood as well.

Elsword got himself up as he muttered "That was too close."

"Whoa…what was that?" Aisha spoke in fear and awe.

However, Eve was already looking at the source of the blast behind them.

"Add." She said with a scowl on her face, the expression of hate directed towards the white-haired scientist, who simply whistled in amusement.

"Have to say, didn't think you would dodge that. And nice to see you again Eve." Add replied as his dynamos reconfigured themselves behind him.

Chung looked at the scientist with a bit of confusion, which for a moment confused Elsword until he remembered _That's right! He wasn't with us when we heard what happened to Raven!_

"Who are you? A member of Black Arms?" Chung asked the scientist, carefully keeping his cannon and pistols within reach in case he needed to quick draw.

Add simply laughed as he said "My name is Add Kim, Vice Commnader of Black Arms' Engineer Core, Mr. Chaser."

Chung instantly reacted to this as he said "Heh, I'm guessing you work closely with the guy I spoke to then?"

The scientist replied "Perhaps. And besides killing you, I'm here to reclaim my property."

Chung looked confused as he questioned "Property?"

The Magician then yelled "She's not your property! She's as human as you and me Add!"

Add looked at the vigilante as he retorted "Yeah right scumbag! I was the one who modified that body to the way it is! And human? Hah! Eve is just a machine! One meant to serve me!"

Eve then snapped and fired a set of lasers at the man as she yelled "SHUT UP!"

Add simply flicked his fingers, making his dynamos block the lasers as they did before.

Add began to bloat "Kek. Give it up alread-"

However, his laugh was suddenly cut off as a cannonball not only broke through the barrier, but blew up inches from his face.

Chung's face was filled with anger, the sort that he felt when he thought about the demon who killed his father.

Elsword looked at his friend's face and tried to grab his shoulder.

"Chun-"

However, Chung cut him off as he said "You guys go on ahead. He's mine."

Elsword looked at him, and could tell from not only his face, but the tone of his voice that he wasn't going to budge.

He sighed as he spoke "Chung…don't die." He then grabbed both Aisha and Eve and went towards their original objective.

Chung simply nodded as he walked over towards where Add had been shot towards.

Add then suddenly burst out of the rubble, clearly furious as he yelled "HOW DARE YOU INJURE MY FACE!"

As Chung brought out his dual pistols, the scientist then jumped onto his dynamos and flew towards the assassin.

Chung then proceeded to shoot both his pistols and his cannon in turns at the scientist, but his shots only managed to get in a graze or two as the scientist closed in.

Chung then pulled out a grenade, prepared to throw it right in Add's flight path. However, the albino smiled as he suddenly vanished from the Chaser's sight.

He then appeared right behind the Chaser, his hand about to direct a dynamo to attack Chung.

With a single crack of electricity, Chung noticed Add had managed to get behind him. But it was too late for him to react.

Suddenly, a blue beam of light hit Add in the back, sending him reeling as he screamed in pain.

"HOW DARE YOU? I AM YOUR CREATOR!" he yelled with anger as he turned towards the Battle Seraph, her finger still smoking from the laser that had come out of it.

"You are not my master, you filth." She retorted.

Chung looked in surprise as he spoke "Eve, didn't I tell you to-"

Eve then slapped him lightly on the face as she stated "I'm not going to let you fight him alone. Because I don't want you to die."

For a moment, Chung couldn't help but blush at her statement, until Add got himself off the ground as he looked at them with disgust.

"So, I seems I need to break you again so you can understand, nasod queen." He spoke with a malicious tone, the purple electricity of his dynamos gaining a red hue as they responded to his anger.

Chung took a stance as he said with a smirk "Let's beat him together."

Eve smiled as she replied "My thoughts exactly."

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

Elsword opened the door of the room of his apartment. As he opened the door, he saw that despite the attack Chaser made on him a few weeks prior, a majority of his room was undamaged, save for the third towards the window which was still being repaired.

Aisha looked around as she asked the redhead "So…you lived in here?"

Elsword simply replied "Yeah, until Chung blew a hole in it. You should have seen how mad Penensio was about it", not paying much attention to the conversation as he walked towards the closet.

Aisha looked around the place as she muttered "I see…"

As soon as she saw the kitchen, she noticed a bunch of notes on the fridge and couldn't help but walk over and read them in curiosity.

One of them was about the test they had the not long before she had been kidnapped but then rescued by the Magician, learning his true identity in the process.

_It feels like it's been so long since then…_

She then read what looked like to be Elsword's training regimen and was shocked at the list.

…_to think he did this much… _she thought.

Her attention then fluttered towards a picture on the upper right. The picture was of a slightly younger Elsword, probably before he transferred into Aisha's middle school, and a blond man in a black coat, wearing some sort of black gauntlets and a pair of sunglasses. In the picture, the man was holding Elsword by the head as he teased the boy, who was giggling along with his master.

_I guess that's his sensei…he must have been a good teacher_ she thought with a smile on her face.

She then looked towards the upper left to see, of all things, a picture of her and Elsword from what appeared to be during the school festival a year ago. Much to her annoyance back then, the two of them got paired up as the "Most likely to go to college" for the yearbook that year, though Chung and Rena ended up jumping into the picture so the two would be more comfortable.

_W-Why does h-he have t-this? _she thought as her face turned as red as Elsword's natural hair color.

Suddenly, a loud thud was heard from the other room as Elsword called "Hey Aisha! Got it open, let's go!"

"R-right!" she replied as she ran out of the room, knocking down another picture, which was on the shelf, on the way.

Out of her kindness, she quickly reached for the photo to put it back. As she picked it up, she saw that it was a picture of Elsword, clearly much younger than the one she knew, and a girl with hair just as red as his.

She then carefully put it back on the shelf, knowing it was a picture of his sister, the one he lost long ago. It was probably one of the only remaining mementos Elsword had of his sister.

"Come on Aish'! Hurry up!" Elsword yelled from the other room again.

"I said I'm coming!" she replied back before running into the room Elsword was in.

* * *

_The Camp, City of Velder, around the same time…_

Rena looked off into the distance towards the place where her friends on the assault team went, and couldn't help but worry about them. After all, she had known Aisha, Elsword, and Chung for quite a while, and Eve felt like a second little sister to her.

Then, Raven tapped her on the shoulder from behind as he asked "You okay Rena?"

Rena almost squealed out of shock as she replied "I'm okay. But Raven! You should be in bed!"

Raven let out a sigh as he tried to speak "But I-"

Rena gave them gave him a hug as she told him "I don't want anything to happen to you! You're already hurt as it is!"

Raven noticed a tear run down her face, and let out a soft smile in defeat as he said "I guess you have a point."

He then wiped away her tear from her face with his human hand as he asked her "Just promise me you won't be reckless."

Rena couldn't help but giggle slightly at the irony of what he was asking her to promise. She then replied "I promise I will."

Suddenly, the alarm bells began to ring throughout the camp. Rena then looked in the distance and saw a large group of Valak units coming in from the direction of the Palace. And the swarm was as large as the group that attacked them earlier.

As she pulled out her bow, she told Raven "Leave this to us, we've got this!"

Raven smiled as he said "I trust you, Rena." Before heading back towards the infirmary tent.

Soon enough, the Valaks were close enough that Rena could now see the individual feather of each of the Valaks. But she was not alone. A large number of the remaining knights had already grouped up into a formation meant for close quarters combat with cover from archers and mages.

Vanessa made her way next to Rena, and then held her spear up high and yelled out "FOR THE CITY OF VELDER!"

The soldiers followed suit as they let out their war cry "FOR THE CITY OF VELDER!"

The soldiers then began to run forwards to the impending enemies, just as the archers and mages began their own preparations.

Rena had been put in charge of the archers, much to her surprise. But she knew they didn't have the time to argue about the matter. The enemy was almost in reach of the infantry.

"TAKE AIM!" she yelled, aiming her own arrow as well as the troops notched their arrows.

At the same time, from not far away, Aisha's older sister ordered "READY….", signaling the mages to prepare their spells.

Just as Rena saw the lights of the Valak's visors, both of them cried out:

"FIRE!"

The soldiers then began to shoot a rain of arrows and thunder magic, striking down a multitude of the Valaks that had been unlucky.

Vanessa then yelled out the order "All units fire at will! And prepare the cannon barrage!"

The soldiers then followed orders, quickly brining up the few wheeled and hand cannons they had, as well as a few soldiers carrying the new Disfrozen ammo to them.

And Ara happened to be one of the people who happened to be carrying them nearly tripped on nothing, but managed to catch herself before making her way to the cannoneers.

_Ara, you don't have to do this. Your body is still worn out from your transformation! _Eun scolded her, worried about her health.

However, Ara retorted back _I won't! Just because I'm tired doesn't mean I can't help everyone! Elsword is risking his life out there, so at the very least I can help defend the camp!_

Eun stood silent for a few moments, but then chuckled _I suppose that's a fair point_ as Ara delivered the ammunition.

As Ara ran back towards the ammunition tent, she couldn't help but look towards the castle, the place where the one she loved was headed.

She then silently prayed "Please be safe Elsword."

* * *

_Secret Passage, City of Velder, 8:19 am_

The dark of the underground passage was nearly pitch black, save for a single flame in Elsword's hand, which lit only a small portion of the passage.

Aisha looked down the passage with some disbelief. The darkness around the two made the hall seem almost endless. She couldn't even tell how long they had walked for anymore.

She looked at Elsword and asked him "Just how long is this thing?"

However, Elsword did not respond to her, simply continuing to walk down the stone passage.

Aisha then asked him again "Elsword, how long is this passage?"

"Oh. What did you say?" He responded as he turned his head towards her, his eyes stating he looked slightly confused.

Aisha then pouted "I asked how long this thing is" as she looked back from the way they came, which was just as dark as the way in front of them.

Elsword then replied "It's a few miles, maybe 5 or so. My place is-well, was pretty far from the palace. And we couldn't put anything electric or whatnot, otherwise someone else would have found it a long time ago."

Aisha contemplated what he said and with a small nod responded with "I guess that would make sense."

Rune then turned back to looking ahead as he walked down the corridor, as he said "Yeah…"

Aisha then let out a sigh before she said "Stop spacing out ElDork."

The vigilante was caught off guard for a moment as he replied "ElDork? Really?"

Aisha then smiled for a moment, but then went back to looking down the dark abode.

After a few moments, she said "I can tell when you're thinking about your past you know."

This time, Elsword was caught completely off guard. He hadn't expected her to catch onto his behavior so quick.

_Note to self, Aish' is more observant than she looks_ he thought to himself before saying "Yeah…something is bugging me is all…"

Aisha put a hand on his shoulder as she spoke "Don't worry, whatever happens, I have your back" she said with a smile on her face.

He made a simple response to that.

"Yeah."

Though as Elsword looked forward, Aisha couldn't help but blush as he looked away. Little to her knowledge, Elsword was doing the same under his mask.

_Good thing I have my mask on right now_ he thought to himself.

After another ten or so minutes of walking, they came to the end of the passage, the frame of a door in its place.

Aisha walked forward and examined the door as Elsword backed up for a moment. She noticed the door was completely closed shut, and in fact, it didn't even have any hinges.

Aisha then turned towards Elsword as she began to ask "So, how does this door o-"

But as she turned around, she had her answer.

The Magician tackled the door with all of his might, causing the slab of stone to fall back.

He then cleaned off his sleeves as he said "It was built for one time use. So Penensio wanted to kepp it simple"

The purplette couldn't help but let out a sigh. After all the things she had seen him do, this was kind of a disappointment. But she decided not to worry about it and ran out of the passage.

They had come up in an outside hall near the courtyard of the palace. Other than the rubble of broken doors and gates, the corpses all over the place, and the smell of gunpowder, Rune thought the place seemed pretty much untouched.

As the two of them walked towards the center courtyard, Elsword heard the sound of a jetpack. Assuming it was one of the Valaks, he then hid behind the end of the wall that separated them from the center courtyard, signaling Aisha to do the same.

He looked in the courtyard to see one of the Valaks land at the central steps. As it touched down, a man walked down the steps.

It was his face that made Elsword nearly snap. It was Wally, the man that had tortured him and took away his sister all those years ago. But the feeling of Aisha's hand made him snap back to reality. And so, he stayed behind the wall, eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Report, Alpha" Wally commanded the nasod.

Valak Alpha then stated "We have resistance at the front gate, and they have made a defensive line near the outskirts of the city. It is likely that is their main camp."

Wally then spoke "And where is Kim?"

Alpha then reported "He was last seen in the downtown sector sir."

Wally then let out a grumble before speaking "Very well then, if anyone survives, be sure to bring them in. I'm sure we can make some use of them in our…experiments."

This time, Elsword couldn't keep his temper in check.

He then walked out of the alcove as he yelled "No way in hell Wally!"

Both Wally and Alpha looked towards the boy, slightly surprised to see one of the people he was so desperate to kill right at his doorstep.

Alpha was the first to speak.

"Target Priority 1 in sight." It spoke in its monotone voice.

Wally then responded "Well, this is a surprise, if it isn't the Magician! Have you come alone? Because that would make this so much easier!"

Aisha decided to show herself to the enemy as well, her staff already charged with magic energy.

"He's not alone!" she spoke, pointing the end of her staff towards the Valak.

Wally laughed before he spoke "Well, at least you have a friend to go with you to the grave."

"The only thing going to the grave is your machines and your plans, you sadist!" Elsword replied, his sword already glowing from the heat of his magic.

Wally then let out one last laugh as he spoke "Is that so? Well then, if you plan on sending all of my machines to the grave, then how about we see how long it'll take Valak Alpha to rip you to shreds!"

With the end of Wally's statement, Alpha then pulled out his own sword as he spoke "It shall be done, Master Wally."

Soon enough, Alpha then rushed towards the two, its orange eyes ablaze with determination to destroy the vigilante and his friend, who were just as ready to take it on.

* * *

**Elsword: Well, seems like we're finally at the last big fight!**

**Aisha: Yeah, I just hope we can beat it! Just don't space out, okay?**

**Elsword: Yeah. And hopefully everyone else does fine as well!**

**Edan: Hmph, you better be thanking me after this Elsword, because I'm going to be fighting a lot of those Valaks, RIGHT WVH?**

**WVH: Don't worry, I'll be sure to give you some screentime in that!**

**Edan: Good!**

**Chung: You guys have fun with that…meanwhile, I'm going to make Add pay for what he did to Eve! *hits Add***

**Add: Dood! We're not fighting IRL! Just in the story! **

**Eve: *slaps Add* Doesn't mean you deserve a punch or two. I saw you steal Chung's pudding cup last night!**

**Add: …oh…you saw that…**

**Chung: I freaking knew it! *attacks Add***

**Ara: Calm down you guys!**

**Rena: Don't worry Ara, they're just having male bonding!**

**Raven: I don't think male bonding works like that Rena…**

**WVH: Meh, give em a few minutes, then they'll settle down**

**Raven: I guess…**

**WVH: Well anyhow, I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! And don't worry, I'll be sure to try and wrap up the first season soon! And remember to R&amp;R everyone!**


	22. Chapter 23: Four Front War

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**And now we're finally here! The battles between the Black Arms and the Allied forces of the Velder Guard, Police, and its vigilantes are getting heated up! It's a four front war!**

* * *

_Palace Gates, City Of Velder, 8:25 am_

As Elsword raced towards Valak in the palace courtyard, the sounds of another battle echoed from the other side of the gate. A large portion of the Velder Army and police were outside, fighting the Valaks of the Black Arms head on.

One of the members of the force was even fighting hundreds of them at once. The sounds of his blades echoed through the battlefield, inspiring his men.

WHOOSH! SWOOSH! FWOOSH!

Every time the sound echoed, another Valak fell to Edan's blade. Unlike before, when he was trying to protect his brother, this time he focused on taking out as many of the enemy as possible. After all, the members of his battalion even agreed that he should take the front while the others work together on the sides, that way he wouldn't have to worry about the others if one slip by; there was enough of a gap between him and his forces so that he could catch them with ease.

Just as another pile of what was once a squad of Valaks fell to his feet as scrap metal, he quickly made a vertical slash behind him, taking out the Valak that tried to attack him from behind. Just as he took a breath, another group of Valaks made their way towards him.

"Sigh, what is with these things? Do they breed like rabbits or something?" He muttered as he directed his blade towards his new foes.

As they flew towards him, swords and claws ready, he took a breath and focused himself on his blade and enemies.

Just as they reached him, it was over instantly.

Every single one of them was cut into pieces to the point their parts weren't even recognizable. The few members that weren't mid-battle gazed at him with awe.

He noticed this and yelled "Focus! Otherwise you won't make it to tomorrow!" this caused the soldiers to shudder for a moment and quickly go back to helping their allies deal with the remaining Valaks.

He looked towards the top of the wall, and thought about the boy who had come up with this plan in the first place. He then pulled his attention towards the burning city where he separated from the boy and his friends, noticing flashes of blue and purple light. And he was already familiar with the user of the purple light.

Edan just hoped that those kids could pull it off.

"This better work kid." He said to himself, before directing his attention to the next group of Valaks.

"They just keep coming!" Edan spoke with a grin on his face as he sliced the air in front of him with force enough to create a wind slash directed towards his foes.

* * *

_Residential District, City Of Velder, Around the Same Time…_

Just as one of those blue lights that Edan saw flashed, Add fell back slightly from the explosive that had went off almost right next to his head.

"DAMMIT!" He yelled in rage as he fired a set of his discs at the white clad assassin, who dodged them quite easily. Earlier, this strategy may have worked for scientist like it did on Raven, but Eve had figured out how his dynamos worked, and quickly shot a laser at the dynamo disc, causing the attack to be disrupted.

As his dynamos returned to him, he noticed a small scratch on one of them. It was slightly damaged, but for Add, it was a surprise. This was the first time one of his dynamos had actually sustained damage.

_How is this possible! I never gave her weaponry that could damage my dynamos! _He thought as he quickly hid himself behind one of the buildings, first going between them at high speed to keep them from figuring out which building he was behind.

Once he stopped, he breathed in and out very deeply, while saying to himself "Calm down, focus." After a few seconds, he came to an understanding.

That not only did Eve become more powerful, but she was smarter than he originally estimated.

_Maybe her knowledge expands like a human's…yes, that might explain why_ he thought to himself.

"ADD!" a voice yelled from above him. Chung had found him from the roof above, and jumped down as he pulled out his guns, shooting a rain of bullets towards him.

"Tch!" he replied as he quickly dodged the assassin, preparing his own counter attack with three of his dynamos, ready to release a laser towards their foe.

But just as he was about to fire it, a barrage of small lasers attacked him from his side, throwing his aim off and causing the blast to be sent to the left of Chung, nearly searing the end of his blue scarf.

"It's over Add…" Eve said from the side, her eyes holding something Add had never seen on her face before.

Satisfaction.

Add looked at the two of them. Not only had they managed to anger him to the point of near no return, but now they were saying that he was finished!

But white haired mad man did feel slightly intimidated. Since his dynamos didn't block the attack from before, he could only assume that the damage to his dynamos had disrupted their automatic sensory circuits.

He then laughed, despite it not having much effect on the faces of his opponents.

"Is that so!? I should tell you, NO ONE has ever driven me this far! But that doesn't mean I'm finished!" he spoke with a sneer on his face.

_Just what is he planning?_ Chung thought, aiming his cannon right for the scientist's head.

Eve's eyes then suddenly opened wide as she caught on to the sudden energy spike coming from Add's dynamos and fired off a laser towards him.

But just before it could hit, his dynamos created a large purple cube of energy, which blocked the shot.

"What the!? Eve's laser didn't work?" Chung reacted in shock, before firing a shot at the cube as well.

This time the cube reacted by changing into a triangular prism and firing off a laser, destroying the missile, while also glancing

"It had no effect!?" Eve gasped.

The albino laughed at the two of them as he said "Allow me to present my ultimate weapon! The Apocalypse! Cower in fear before the tool of your destruction!"

However, their reactions weren't what Add was seeking. Instead of despair, he saw resolve on their faces. Resolve to find a way to defeat his weapon.

Chung reloaded his cannon as he said "Well then, we just need to destroy your weapon then!"

Eve nodded in agreement, her drones in front of her in combat positions.

Add sneered as he replied "It seems you lot don't give up! Well then, instead of taking Eve back with me, I'll send you both to the grave together!" The cube then opened up into a snowflake shape, and all over the surface pointed towards the duo appeared small purple orbs of energy, ready to fire lasers at the two.

On the other side, Chung put his cannon on his shoulder, and held the trigger, causing the cannon to glow with energy.

_I only have 30 cannonballs left…I need to make this count! For Eve!_ He thought as the end of the barrel gave off a blinding blue glow.

Eve on the other hand was charging as much energy as she could into his fingertips as she thought _His attack seems to be some type of scattershot. I need to take out as many of those as possible, so we can beat him!_

Moments later, all three of them fired their attacks at the same time.

"Apocalypse Rain!"

"SHOOTING STAR!"

"Energy Needles: Max!"

From afar, the setting of their fight then broke out in bright explosions of light.

* * *

_Battlefield outside of the Camp, City of Velder, Also Around the Same Time_

As the lights of the fight between Add and Chung and Eve lit up the residential district, the field in the front of the camp had turned into a full on battlefield.

Hundreds of small battles between Valaks and the soldiers were taking place, many of them intertwining as attacks missed and hit participants of other conflicts and others after defeating their enemies joined their brethren.

But the part that nearly made Ara sick to her stomach was the corpses strewn across the battlefield, even if she was looking at them from the barricade walls.

"This is….horrible…" she barely managed to speak.

Eun let out a deep sigh as she told her _War is a horrible thing indeed…_

As Eun tried to consult the young girl, Vanessa made her way over towards Noel, who was also spectating the carnage, yet casting attack magic every now and then to assist her soldiers, but even she was starting to grow weary.

"What's our status over here Noel?" Vanessa asked the guard captain.

"Not good…we're starting to lose ground…" Noel spoke, gasping for air before firing off another attack spell.

Vanessa looked towards the castle as she contemplated "I hope we can hold out long enough…for the sake of everyone here." She said before pulling out her lance to stab an incoming airborne Valak.

Ara then walked over towards them as she said "Don't worry, I believe Elsword can do it!"

Noel looked at her with a bit of surprise as she responded "Wait, Elsword!?"

Ara realized what she said only after Noel responded.

_Ara…really?_ Eun spoke in her mind with a sigh.

Vanessa then said "Wait, you mean that lazy red head that still manages to ace my class?"

Noel muttered "I should have known Penensio would have a reason to look after him…"

Vanessa suddenly pulled back in surprise, but then laughed as she said "I should have known there was a reason that crazy idiot persuaded me to quit the guard and go into teaching!"

Both Ara and Noel were surprised by this as they responded "Wait, wha-"

But suddenly, an arrow went right between the two as it implanted in the cranium of the Valak that was behind them about to attack.

Rena yelled at the group "FOCUS ON THE FIGHT!" she said before firing another few shots from her bow, taking out a Valak with each shot.

Vanessa held her spear in ready as she said "Well, I'm not going to let the kids have all the fun here, how about you Noel?"

Noel responded "I know how you feel!" as she poured more magic into her staff.

Ara couldn't help but smile as she watched the two of them begin to attack the enemy, only to look slightly scared a few moments later as Vanessa began to cleave through the Valaks with her spear.

Even Eun couldn't help but say _Now I see why they say she's a scary Math teacher…_

* * *

_Palace Courtyard, City Of Velder, 8:30 am_

As the roar of the battles all over echoed through the city, the blades of the Black Nasod and the Magician clashed within the palace walls.

It was only after their first clash that Elsword could tell just how powerful Valak Alpha was. In comparison to the rest of the Valak units, he made them look like they were jokes. Not only was Alpha stronger than them, he was faster, more accurate, and had what seemed like a godly reaction time.

And Elsword felt it every time he parried Alpha's blade and vice versa. He could feel his muscles ache every time. If it wasn't for the sharp blade and Aisha supporting him with attack and support magic, he guessed he would have been long dead by now.

As Alpha made for a lunge, Elsword quickly somersaulted into the air as he parried the attack. But before he could make his landing, Alpha sent a fist up towards where he was, forcing Elsword to use a wind rune to dodge the attack.

As he landed, Alpha rushed towards him in an attempt to attack the Magician before he could recover. But just as his blade got near Elsword, he jumped backwards, dodging a bolt of lightning from Aisha.

The vigilante then followed up her support by summoning a wave of magic blades that flew up from the ground, but just as it was about to reach the nasod, it quickly flew to the side, not only dodging the attack, but making a second rush towards Elsword, his blade and claw aimed for his head.

Aisha yelled out "Els, look out!"

Elsword reacted instantly to Aisha's warning and brought his sword up in defense. He barely managed to parry Alpha's ferocious barrage of attacks, sending him backwards sliding across the floor.

Aisha then covered Elsword with a barrage of flaming meteors, halting Alpha's chance to advance before Elsword could get up.

But then what Elsword considered a 'bad' scenario happened.

"Switching Targets" it spoke before making a charge towards Aisha.

"Aisha move!" the Magician yelled as he began his own mad dash.

Just as it seemed Alpha would reach her, she disappeared instantly, only to appear behind Elsword, much to not only his surprise, but that of Alpha and Wally's as well.

Wally chuckled as he spoke "Well, seems we have quite the little mage over here. You would have made quite a power source, and you still can be."

Aisha asked him "What do you mean by that!?" she said, holding her staff towards him, causing Alpha to dash between her and Wally in case she tried to attack him.

However, Elsword got the picture, his face under his mask turning even more serious than before.

"You, you were the ones who tried to kidnap her!" he exclaimed, his tone speaking of his rage.

The former king laughed as he spoke "Of course! After all, we needed a great amount of magic energy in order to create these masterpieces, especially the one in front of you!"

Elsword's eyes widened from Wally's statement as he replied "You…don't tell me you-"

Wally answered Elsword's question for him as he spoke "Yes, we drained the mages we captured of every bit of their magic power, including their own lives."

Aisha's eyes widened as she gasped in terror. She had heard that for mages, losing their magic can mean death, but just the way Wally described it just sickened her to her stomach.

_He…he killed them for their magic!? _She thought, her breathing becoming heavier and heavier. She was panicking. Just trying to imagine what it was like terrified her.

Just as it seemed Aisha was about to black out, Elsword spoke.

"Aisha, I won't let him do that to you. No way in hell."

Just his words made Aisha look up at him. His white hair and black outfit flowing in the wind, and his bright blue eyes, which were alit with resolve.

Elsword then turned his attention back towards Wally as he said "Wally…you monster…for what you've done…I swear, I will make you pay the price you deserve!"

As he spoke, for a moment, Wally saw something in the Magician's eyes and tone. Something he had experienced once before.

Wally's expression changed to one of anger as he barked "You…you know that damned Howling Shadow, don't you!?"

Elsword did not reply, only continuing to give him the same stare.

"Alpha! Execute this brat so I never have to see his face again!" Wally yelled at his creation.

"Yes sir, activing execution mode." Alpha spoke. The glowing energy on his wings turned red, and his sword began to glow from the change in power.

In response, the Magician began channeling his magic into the sword he held, and unlike Alpha's dark blood red energy, his sword glowed with a bright red, much like flames.

"Seal of Knowledge!" Aisha yelled as she cast a buff on Elsword, making his energy almost equal to Alpha's.

_I need to win this! For her sake! For everyone's sake!_ He thought as the energy in his sword hit its max level.

Alpha seemed to hit his max as well, as his eyes suddenly blinked.

The two then rushed at each other, their blades pointed at each other's throats.

"UNLIMITED BLADE: MAX!"

"BERSERKER BLADE!"

As the two clashed, both Aisha and Wally were sent back due to the force of the fighter's attacks, sending them to the side.

But just as the wind created by the clash ceased, both Elsword and the nasod seemed unscathed.

However, Alpha's reflexes allowed him to act first, sending his fist right into Elsword's abdomen.

Just as Elsword coughed up blood from his injury, Alpha sent a second punch right into the Magician's face, shattering his mask. The impact sent him flying into the wall of the courtyard.

"GAH!" he cried out in pain as he hit the wall, which then crumbled on top of him due to the impact.

"ELSWORD!" Aisha cried out as she sent a small tornado of wind magic towards him, knocking away the debris before it could fall on him.

"Elsword?" Wally muttered as Aisha ran over towards the Magician.

As she ran to his side, she saw him trying to get up and moved to help him, she saw just how bad he was injured.

His cloak was ripped from the sheer force of Alpha's first fist, revealing a large bruise where some of his ribs were supposed to be. It was clear that his ribs had taken a heavy hit.

And besides the few scratches on his face, his left temple was bleeding from where he had been hit the second time. But also, Elsword's hair and eyes had returned to his original color.

"Elsword!" Aisha cried out with tears on her face.

He started to get up, yet his legs barely held up against his weight, leaving him only able to kneel at most.

_Damnit, I'm at my limit here!_ He thought as he looked upwards, not only at Aisha, but through the dust towards the two trying to kill him and Aisha.

He coughed up a bit of blood before speaking "Aisha, I need you to get out of here."

The purplette yelled "No! I'm not going to leave you!"

Elsword looked towards her with his red eyes as he spoke "Aisha! You need to run! Bef-"

But he was cut off by Wally's laughter. The way he laughed would have been hysterical if it didn't belong to a mad man.

"Of course, Test Subject 553! Elsword Rune Sieghart! I should have known you were the Magician!" Wally spoke with a malevolent grin on his face.

* * *

_Forest Clearing near Velder/Feita border, 8:35 am_

Even far from the city, the black smoke that loomed over it spread far and wide, even visible from a distance as far as the almost isolated Shrine village of Feita.

However, most of the area was covered by darkly shaded trees, so there were very few spots one could see the city of Velder in flames.

One such spot was near the edge of the border, I small cliff overlooking the remaining bit of forest, followed by the plains that made up a majority of the Velder area.

It was here that the silhouette gazed upon the destruction, one of his fists clenched in a rage that held a strange sense of calm.

Then, a gust of wind blew from the direction of the city, revealing the black coat the man wore as it flapped in the wind.

Then a moment later, he jumped down into the forest below, towards the city on fire.

* * *

**Elsword: So not only am I being beaten the crap out of, but my identity is also spilling out all over the place….great**

**Ara: I'm sorry Elsword! Please forgive me!**

**Aisha: Relax Elsword, they're both Penensio's friends, I'm sure they won't reveal it to anyone else.**

**Chung: Yeah, and besides, if Vanessa is willing to use chalk as a projectile weapon to protect test answer keys, I'm sure she'll keep your secret**

**Elsword: …you have a point**

**Raven: …How would you two know that?**

**Elsword &amp; Chung: …we tried to steal them once…just for fun…it didn't end well…**

**Aisha: Figures**

**Rena: …**

**Aisha: Why are you so quiet Rena?**

**Rena: …I was with them…**

**Raven: …didn't see that one coming**

**Elsword: Yeah, but looking back at it, it was really funn-*slapped by Eve***

**Eve: You shouldn't steal things Elsword**

**Elsword: What? Is Chung stealing your heart an excep-*slapped repeatedly by a now embarrassed Eve***

**WVH: …well, I guess we should wrap this up so I can stop Eve from slapping Elsword into oblivion. Be sure to R&amp;R and come back for the next chapter of the Magician! *goes over to try and pull Eve away from Elsword***


	23. Chapter 24: World Worth Dying For

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**As the battles roll on, Elsword is on the verge of death, and his identity has been revealed to his sworn enemy. Will our hero be able to make it out of this peril? And will his friends hold out and win the war? And who is this mysterious figure making his way towards Velder? The end draws near…**

* * *

_Residential District, City of Velder, 8:33 am_

Back in the residential district, the lights of the battle between the two parties were beginning to dim.

Add had a scowl on his face. He hadn't expected Chung and Eve to last for so long, and he could only keep Apocalypse fueled for so long, and besides that, he had to dodge the occasional missile or laser that managed to get past the cube.

_Tch, must be due to the damage some of my dynamos took earlier_ he thought as he flew himself out of the way of another laser.

On the other side, both Chung and Eve were getting low on energy. They had been fighting back against the swarm of energy beams for nearly 4 minutes straight now. As Chung could feel the strain from his cannon, Eve's fingertips were beginning to glow a molten red.

But that wasn't the only issue in their case. Chung was also constantly looking at his cannon, checking the ammunition count. It was a good thing he had set up the missiles to separate on launch so he could increase the amount, but it could only help him so much. The amount of cannonballs he had was still finite.

As he looked at the count again, it read '5 remaining'.

A look of dread appeared on his face. There was no way his cannon would hold up at this rate.

But just as his mind went into a slight panic, he could hear a scream coming from his right.

"EVE!" he cried out. Eve had just been barraged by a barrage of energy blasts, one of which pierced through her leg.

He then shot the last of his missiles into the air and then rushed over to her, picking her up so he could carry her to cover, all while the scientist laughed manically at their struggle.

Eve pulled at Chung's collar as she said "Just leave me! You won't get away at this rate!"

Chung ignored her for the moment, focusing entirely on running, despite Eve's pleas for him to leave her, saying that there was no way he could dodge Add's attacks.

But despite Add's best efforts, none of his energy blasts could keep up with the blonde, much to his surprise.

"What the? How is he so fast?" he grumbled as he kept trying to shoot him. Yet once again, his barrage fell short of his target.

Just as Add prepared his next barrage, Chung pulled a grenade out of his pocket and tossed it behind him. Soon enough, it exploded in the form of light, blinding the scientist, causing him to miss again.

"GAH! I HATE THOSE THINGS!" he yelled as he reeled back from the blinding light of the flashbang.

It gave Chung just enough time to get himself and Eve into some cover behind the ruins of one of the buildings.

As he put her down, he took a moment to breathe before asking "Are you alright Eve?"

Eve looked at him, slightly surprised as she spoke "I'm fine, but you should worry about yourself!"

Chung took a deep breath before he said with a smile "Sorry, I just tend to worry about those I care about first."

The girl then asked him "What does that mean? You should be focused on surviving!"

He smiled as he walked towards the street. He then turned his head and spoke.

"Because, I'm not going to let the people I love ever die on me again"

Her reaction to this was something that hadn't happened to her for a long time.

She cried. She cried for the first time ever since the experiments done on her.

_Why am I crying? Why?_ She thought as the tears flowed down her face as she watched the boy walk towards a fight she thought he couldn't win.

But a part of her began to think _He can win, I'm sure of it_.

She wasn't sure if it was a glitch in her programming, feelings, or Elsword beginning to rub off on her.

As Chung walked down the street, he pulled out his last two weapons. His two pistols fed directly off his mana. Weapons he had made himself, based off of the cannon's guardian stone design.

And unlike his cannon, they were much lighter.

Soon enough, Add came into his view, the scientist smiled, though his tone was clear that he was angry.

"SO, ARE YOU FINALLY DONE RUNNING FROM ME YOU RAT!?" he yelled while trying to keep his composure.

Despite Add's tone, Chung stayed silent. This made the albino-hair scientist even more pissed off.

But Chung's mind was going a mile a minute. He thought about everything he had done so far. From the day he escaped Hamel to where he was now.

_All I've done, is run away from my struggles, my pain, my enemies…_

"WHAT!? YOU THINK YOU'RE SO GREAT THAT YOU DODGED MY ATTACKS!? THEN HOW ABOUT I END YOU NOW!" Add shouted at the boy, his cube weapon already changing to firing mode.

_No more…I won't run away anymore…instead, I'll run straight at them!_ Chung thought as he ran towards the MasterMind.

At first, it seemed Add had the upper hand, the blasts of energy heading straight towards Chung. But then, the blasts went above or besides him, every single one of them missing him by mere centimeters.

This made Add even more angry, which made him have apocalypse fire off even more blasts. But once again, every single shot went behind him.

Just as the Chaser got close enough so they could see the pupils of each other's' eyes, Add finally realized just what he miscalculated.

_His speed…it's too fast for my dynamos!_ He thought as he pulled his dynamos out to protect himself.

But the Chaser's weapon was already out, and aimed at the MasterMind.

He fired two shots. One at the Apocalypse's core, which was revealed due to the moment of mental instability in Add's mind. And the second went straight through Add's right arm.

Add fell backwards in pain as held his arm. The agony of it was too much that he couldn't focus on his dynamos, causing the ones that kept him up to fly away, towards a skyscraper in the Business District. And he screamed all the way until he flew into the building, out of Chung's view.

Meanwhile, Chung skid to a stop, tumbling in the process. Just as he finally came to a full stop, he feel back onto his butt, which stung from a burning pain.

While it was true he managed to doge the blast, the impacts of the energy blasts still burnt a part of his backside. He counted himself lucky that his hair somehow made it unscathed.

"Chung!" Eve cried out as she limped over to him. This slightly surprised him, he didn't think Eve would manage to run over here in her condition, but a smile appeared on his face nonetheless.

"Hey Miss Eve." He spoke with a kind tone. But just as he reached her, she then shrieked at the wounds on his back.

"You're injured! Why would you do something so reckless!?" she spoke with tears in her eyes. For Chung, this was a first, seeing a girl cry over him. He couldn't help but let his face turn a bright red.

"I-I'll b-be f-fine!" he spoke, trying to look away so Eve wouldn't see his rosy cheeks.

"What about your injury!?" he asked the nasod girl, trying to turn the conversation.

Eve looked down at her leg. She had bandaged it up, yet it still hurt a little. Normally, it would have been easier for her to respond, but seeing Chung's face caused her to do something that was just as rare as crying for her.

"I'll m-manage." She spoke while looking away from the boy in order to hide her own blush, which she herself didn't understand. Though now she considered the possibility it was due to the fact her design was based off humans, which included certain organs they had as well. Just thinking about it mde her blush even more.

"Miss Eve, is something wrong?" Chung asked her.

She quickly replied with "I'm fine. And just Eve will do fine."

Chung let out a sigh, looking up at the palace on the levels above.

"I guess we're stuck here for a while…" Chung said as he gazed at the castle.

"It would seem so…" Eve spoke, trying not to touch his hands as much as possible.

_Whoever gave me human emotions…why can't I seem to hate you?_ She thought.

Meanwhile the thing racing around in Chung's mind the most was _…Omigod...I'm alone with Eve…but in a bad situation…WHAT DO I DO!?_

* * *

_Palace Courtyard, City of Velder, Around the Same Time_

"Of course, Test Subject 553! Elsword Rune Sieghart! I should have known you were the Magician!" Wally spoke with a grin, almost as if though he was trying to hold back his laughter.

Elsword looked at the man across the courtyard, and saw the hazel eyes that once brought him despair.

And once again, he was helpless. He could barely move. All he could do was look at the man with a glare of resentment, just like back then.

"To think that one of my own experiments would become my enemy! It's quite ironic really!" he chuckled, his words almost like poison to Elsword's ears.

As he walked closer, Aisha stepped in front of Rune, her staff in hand and directed towards the former king.

"Don't take another step closer, you monster!" she spoke, her wand cackling with lightning.

Wally took a look at her magic and simply laughed. "Is this really the best you can do? Hah!" he teased the girl.

Aisha then shot out the bolt, but just as it seemed it would hit Wally, Alpha blocked the attack, completely unaffected by the electricity.

"Wha-What?" she stuttered. She thought it would have done at least some damage, but the nasod stood tall, walking towards her slowly.

Wally laughed even harder as he spoke "I should tell you, unlike the rest of my creations, Alpha is the first to have resistance to electricity. Took a lot of time in order to get it right you know! Now Alpha!"

Alpha then dashed towards her and slapped her towards the side, causing her to skid across the pavement.

"Aisha!" Elsword yelled, getting back up on his feet. He barely managed to get up before nearly falling down. He then yelled "Don't you dare touch her!"

"What's this? A rat like you cares about her so much? Well then Valak, give him what he wants." Wally spoke with glee.

Alpha then turned back towards Elsword, grabbing his head and throwing him over to into the fountain behind her. As the dust cleared, he was chest first on the ground, blood everywhere around him, hanging on by a mere thread.

"Elsword!" Aisha cried out in terror.

Wally smiled as he said "And I think it's about time to wrap things up here…Magician! But before we leave, I have one last thing to show you!"

Just as she picked herself off the ground, Alpha took a hold of her collar, and walked towards the wall adjacent to the Palace Gate.

He then began to hold her by his claw, strangling her as Elsword took one last look towards her.

"Ai…sha" he whispered, barely able to speak, trying to reach out towards the purplette.

Then, Elsword's vision turned to black.

_Is this….the end?..._

"_Time to wake up Rune."_

He then opened his eyes, seeing the face of his master from long ago. But he was not in the Palace courtyard anymore. He was in a barn, laying down on his back.

He tried to speak, but he found no words had come out of his mouth.

"_It seems you overdid it again…from what I can guess, you don't understand how to control your flames yet…" _his teacher spoke to him.

Elsword then realized what was going on. This was his memory of the last time he tried to practice using his phoenix flames with his master. And even then, he hadn't learned to fully control the ability given to him by the experiments Wally put him through.

_Is this…that life passing before my eyes sort of thing?_ He thought as he looked as his master, who as always had his mask and ski goggles on. He had only seen his master's face once. He was told the reason why Sensei kept it on was due to one of his own abilities.

Then, his master tossed a ring over to him as he said "_But, I do have to give you credit for coming this far, so here!_"

Rune barely caught the item as it flew into his palms. It was a ring inlaid with a purple gem. At first, he looked at his master, slightly confused.

"_Go on. Put it on"_ his master told him.

As soon as he put it on, just like back then, he felt the sudden urge of exhaustion consume his body.

His master smiled as he said "_That's a ring of restraint. Normally, it represses magic energy of the holder by half, but after tampering with it, it will only affect your phoenix flames. You will be able to use the basic properties of the flames of creation, but you will not be able to use the flames of destruction."_

Elsword remembered that moment well. He understood that it was for his own safety. If he couldn't control that power, it would surely have been dangerous for himself and everyone around him.

Sensei then walked towards the door, and as he looked back, he told Rune _"That ring will only come off when you find your world worth dying for. Not only that, but you will have what you need to control your power."_

Then once again, everything went dark.

_My world…worth…dying for?_ He thought, trying to understand the wisdom of his master.

_Not worth much now I suppose…but, I feel like I should know it by now_ he thought, contemplating to himself.

Then moments later, an image flashed before his eyes.

It was a picture of him and his friends back at the restaurant.

He then gritted his teeth, realizing exactly what he had been missing.

_Ara. Raven. Eve. Chung. Rena._ He thought as each of their faces flashed through his head.

Then he saw an image of a girl with purple hair, with a big smile on her face.

_Aisha…_

Suddenly, the ring on his finger began to crack.

_I get it now…they are…my world worth dying for!_

Suddenly, his eyes opened once more, to the pavement of the courtyard.

But now, unlike before, he felt an energy pulsating through his body. One familiar to him.

And now, he knew how to use it.

He then got up on his knee, causing some of the debris around him to dribble across the ground.

The noise caused the others to look at him. One with tears of joy. One with terror as to wondering how he could stand. And one with an emotionless expression.

"Elsword…" Aisha muttered, tears of joy in her eyes

"H-how can you stand!? After that much, it shouldn't be possible!" Wally spoke, trying to understand just how Elsword was alive.

He then turned towards Alpha as he ordered "Alpha! Kill him! Kill him now!"

As Alpha dropped the girl to the floor, who was coughing as air filled her lungs again, he spoke "Yes Master Wally."

He then flew towards Elsword as Aisha yelled "Elsword, look out!"

But the attack never reached him.

An aura of flames burst from Elsword, which not only cloaked the boy, but halted Valak's advance with sheer force.

"Anomaly detected!" Alpha reported as he skidded across the floor away from the boy. The metal on his claw now glowed red, from the mere heat of Elsword's flames.

"What the! That's impossible!" Wally shouted in surprise.

Aisha reacted similarly, though for her, it was a good surprise instead of a bad one.

"No way!"

Elsword then reached his hand towards his sword on the ground, which the flames picked up for him.

He then put himself into a stance as he spoke "It's over, Wally!"

Wally stumbled back as he spoke "Don't tell me…those are…the phoenix flames!?"

Alpha then rushed towards Elsword once more, except this time, Elsword appeared behind him almost instantly, no longer cloaked in flames, but now the flames had become wings on his back, and also covered his sword.

"It's over!" He yelled.

Alpha tried to stop it with his claw, but the heat was too much. All he could do was watch as his claw melted as the blade pierced his core.

"Heat overload! Heat over…lo…ad" were the last words that came out of his speakers before what remained of him went silent.

Elsword then let out a sigh before having his flames return to his body as Aisha stumbled over to him.

Just seeing her smile was enough to want to give her a big grin back.

But then, Wally's laughter ruined the moment as he spoke "To think that you could control the flames to such an extent! I should have known better!"

Elsword's looked over at the man, his gaze serious, yet also one with pity.

Aisha on the other hand was wary. But not because Wally might have gone insane, but she had a bad feeling, like an omen.

"Your plan is done for Wally! Your ultimate creation is gone! I'm going to turn you in! For all the crimes you have done!" he yelled at him.

But then, Wally got himself up, his grin had returned.

"You really think, I had only one trump card!?" he spoke as he pulled out a controller and pressed a button on it.

Moments after he pressed it, one of the doors of the inner gates fell to the floor. As dust once more flew into the air, a figure walked out of the door.

"Crimson…destroy these fools." Wally spoke with glee, as if though he had won.

Then, the figure pulled out a sword and slashed at the air, dispelling the dust around her.

Both Elsword and Aisha couldn't believe what was before their eyes.

Unlike Alpha, their new enemy was clothed in a red and black attire, most of it skin tight. And her hair was red, just like Elsword's. The only difference between them was her dull and lifeless yellow eyes, with slit pupils that looked demonic.

But both of them recognized her instantly. Despite what had changed, they were both certain.

"Elesis…"

* * *

**Elsword: …no way…Elesis is the enemy?**

**Aisha: ...**

**Add: …totally saw this coming**

**Eve: *lie detector goes off* No you didn't, I know! *slaps him***

**Chung: Whoa, to think that she'd be brought into the series like this?...Makes me wonder how things are going to go from here…**

**Rena: I just hope Elsword is okay…**

**WVH: …you guys are really getting into character!**

**Raven: Well, it's a good story, haven't you ever imagined yourself as the main character whenever you read a novel?**

**WVH: …you have a point! *laughs***

**Ara: …*waiting patiently for Admin to release more in hopes of more AraxElsword***

**WVH: So then-**

**Wolfen: I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! And be sure to R&amp;R!**

**Elsword: Wait sen-*bopped on the head by WVH so he when he wakes up, he won't remember Wolfen showed up early***

**WVH: Dood! It's not time for you yet!**

**Wolfen: Really? I'm kinda tired of waiting you know…**

**WVH: *facepalms*…just another chapter or two…so just wait…and to the fans, see you all next time!**


	24. Chapter 25FINALE: Miracle

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Elsword, its characters, and skills! They belong to KOG, KillerCombo, and Nexon. The only things I own are the story and the OCs that are introduced into the plot. So just enjoy the show!**

**Valak Alpha has been defeated, but now of all people, Elsword's sister, who was thought to be dead, has appeared on the other side! And will the allied forces be able to hold on!? This is the END!**

* * *

_Palace Courtyard, City of Velder, 8:40 am_

Elsword couldn't hide his shock as he saw a person he never thought he would see again.

Aisha was the same. After hearing Elsword's story and coming to know him better, she knew exactly what was on his mind.

"Elesis…" Elsword and Aisha spoke in unison.

Elsword wanted to shed tears of joy from his eyes, but he was much more focused on how different she was.

Her eyes were not filled with the warm comfort he came to know back in Ruben. They seemed cold, as if though she didn't even recognize him. And unlike before, her eyes had a dull yellow in them, much like a demon's. He tried to speak, but couldn't find the words.

_Elsword…_ Aisha thought.

Wally laughed a bit before saying "Oh, I completely forgot, this used to be your sibling. This makes this even more satisfying."

The Magician then looked towards Wally as he yelled "What the hell did you do to her Wally!?"

The former king simply grinned as he replied "How about you see for yourself, boy."

He spoke his orders once more "Destroy them Crimson!"

Elesis let out a simple "Yes Sir" in an almost robotic tone that lacked emotion. She pulled out a red and black sword which oozed in a black and red aura.

She then jumped up into the air right above Elsword, who was still in shock, didn't move as she began her descent.

"Elsword! Snap out of it!" she yelled as she tackled him to the side, barely managing to dodge Crimson's attack herself.

As she landed, Crimson turned towards the two of them and dashed towards them, her blade aimed for Aisha's throat.

But Aisha's voice had snapped Elsword out of his funk by then, giving him the focus needed to parry away his sister's attack. As her blade went to the side, it cut open a hole in the wall to Elsword's left.

_You gotta be kidding me! She's more powerful than Ran was!_ He thought as he continued to parry her attacks.

Then, he managed to parry her sword in such a way he gained an opening on her.

But just as he was about to attack, he couldn't help but see the person his sister used to be. Then, the flames on his sword started to dim as he flinched from hesitation.

Crimson noticed this, taking the chance to attack. Elsword barely blocked the attack, but the force sent him skidding across the ground.

But he was given no chance to recover, as Crimson dashed forwards and began making a volley of stabbing attacks with her blade. While Rune managed to parry a majority of them, the strikes that got through grazed his ribs, legs, and face.

"Elsword! Hold on!" Aisha shouted as she summoned a group of icicle missiles with her magic. She then sent them on a crash course for Crimson.

However, she first pushed back Elsword once again, and then turned to slice every single icicle in half, her speed creating afterimages of her sword strokes in the process. She then dashed towards the mage, who was trying to summon more projectiles.

Before she could reach her, Elsword got into her path and blocked her next attack. Though this time, he wasn't forced back as he used his flames to propel his sword forwards. But once again, he couldn't help but think of the sister he used to know, and his flames dimmed even further.

_This is bad…I don't have the resolve…to fight Elesis like this!_ He thought as he started to skid backwards again, though this time he moved out of the way as he skidded.

As he landed, he started to pant. His sword was starting to shake.

Aisha noticed this immediately. She thought _Elsword, he just barely beat one strong enemy, he may be able to heal, but his body can only hold out so long!_

She casted another spell aimed at Crimson as she thought _I need to help Elsword! Or at this rate…he might die!_

* * *

_Residential District, City of Velder, Around the Same Time_

The area was once again lit with explosions, though a majority of them were from the destruction of Valak units, or attacks that nearly hit Eve and Chung.

He had nearly forgot that they were still in the middle of enemy territory after they had beaten Add. If it wasn't for Eve's motion sensors, they would not have been able to dodge the horde's first attack.

While individually the Valak units weren't difficult to defeat, the two were surrounded on all sides. They barely had time to react as every time one Valak was taken out, another took its place.

Chung was barely holding on. He had taken burns to his back, and now had to depend on his pistols, filling as much mana as possible into each shot so they would pierce the nasods' hard armor.

Meanwhile, for Eve, while she could only stay in one spot due to her injuries, she managed to shoot down each and every Valak that came her way. However, she too was nearing the point of exhaustion, as her breathing between shots became heavier and heavier. She had never fought this long before. If it kept going on like this, she was sure that the two of them would collapse from exhaustion.

She looked back at the blonde behind her, who was screaming "I won't let you hurt her!" as he proceeded to shoot them down.

She smiled as she aimed at the next Valak unit as she thought _I have to protect him…but at this rate…we'll need a miracle to survive…_

* * *

_Palace Gates, City Of Velder, Around the Same Time_

Just as the duo had problems with the nasod horde, Edan was also starting to get worn out. Their sheer numbers was finally taking a toll on him.

"Just how many of you are there!?" he yelled as he sliced another two of them to pieces.

Other than him, the rest of his battalion was starting to be pushed back, the exhaustion of his men causing many them to defensive. Some of them even took fatal wounds due to their ever increasing reaction time.

_What the hell is that idiot doing, taking so long!? _He thought to himself as he swooped over to take out a group of Valaks that were about to come down on his men.

As the men thanked him, he considered his options.

He could simply call for retreat, which could lead to the enemy attacking the enemy in the palace.

He and his men could continue to try and hold out, risking their lives in the process

He could order his men to retreat, and fight on his own. _Though I don't feel like dying today _he thought.

But then it hit him, just as he took out another of the Valak units.

"Men! Enter retreat formation D!" he yelled his orders to the group.

The remaining soldiers then ran back to form a circle. The soldiers closest to the gate held up large shields and spears, the soldiers in the rear were armed much like Edan, and the soldiers in the middle were a cluster of the wounded and marksman, armed with bows and arrows, as well as a few guns.

After his battalion finished getting in formation he ordered "Begin march!"

The group then began to slowly move backwards. The shield bearers took care of the units coming from the gate side, while the units in the back cleared a path for their escape. And the marksmen worked to help on both fronts.

Edan had only taught them this in practice drills, but he was impressed at how well it was working. He thought up of this strategy after Noel beat him and his men in a capture the flag match with practice weapons. He had learned from that he needed a way to defend his frontline soldiers, yet still stall for time for some of his men to steal the flag. He even won the several of those matches afterwards with this tactic.

Though this time it wasn't a game. Occasionally blades passed through the defenses and into some of the shield bearers, though they were able to close the gap quickly, and most of the wounds were non-fatal.

The only thing Edan worried about now other than the fact that they were losing ground was that sooner or later, the Valak units might start heading back and attack The Magician.

"Sorry kid…" he muttered under his breath before taking out another group of Valaks with the rear line.

* * *

_Battlefield outside of the Camp, Also Around the Same Time_

Edan and his men were not the only ones losing their ground at this point.

The front lines of the battle outside of the encampment was already 10 yards away from the barricades. The Velder guards were starting to take losses, and the cannoneers, out of ammo, had to go to the front, swinging their cannons around to attack the incoming forces. But even with their addition the front lines, they were fighting a now fighting a losing battle, or an uphill one figuratively speaking.

And now, even Ara was fighting. She had not only snapped out of her funk, but had recovered enough from the fight before to enter her fox form once again, despite Eun's warnings before she transformed.

_Ara spoke to her friend mentally "We have to help them Eun! Otherwise the camp will-"_

_Eun responded "If you do that, you will likely be rendered unconscious afterwards! And on a battlefield, that's one of the worst things that ca-"_

_Ara then yelled in her mind "But I can't just watch them die!"_

_Eun then let out a sigh, as she spoke "…very well, it seems your mind is made up…"_

She fought through the enemy hordes, taking out Valaks one by one with her spear.

_Right! Left! Right! Above!_ She thought as she made her way around the battlefield, rescuing groups of soldiers.

Then, just as it seemed she had a moment to breath, she could hear the clinking from a Valak that got behind her.

Eun yelled out _Ara!_, for she knew there wasn't enough time for her to dodge.

But moments before the nasod could strike her with its claw, an arrow pierced right through its metallic hand, and a second one left the machine headless, causing it to fall to the floor.

"Stay sharp Ara!" Rena shouted as she aimed at the next group of Valaks in her sight, taking out the nasods that had nearly overwhelmed Noel and Vanessa.

Noel was panting heavily, using her staff to prop her up as she casted her next lightning spell, sapping even more of her strength, while Vanessa kept the survivors of Noel's lightning magic from getting any closer.

Vanessa yelled "There's too many! We need to fall back!"

However, Rena responded "But, we don't have any space left!" as she backed into the barricade wall.

Vanessa looked towards the elf and saw she was right. It was almost to the point the wall was against their backs. If it came to that, the enemy would easily get into the camp, likely killing every single innocent and wounded person in their wake.

Vanessa gritted her teeth, regretting the words she never wished to say.

"Soldiers! We can't let them move any further! We'll fight to the last!"

Even though her words inspired a few of them, many of the soldiers started to lose morale, some starting to step backwards.

Vanessa then muttered "Lady El save us all…" before heading back to trying to hold off the enemy.

* * *

_Back in the Palace Courtyard, 8:45 am_

Elsword skidded back again from another barrage of attacks from Elesis. But unlike before, he now had a deep gash on his right shoulder, which oozed blood onto his coat.

He looked at the person in front of him, preparing to counterattack, but once again, he couldn't bring himself to attack her.

The truth was, it was her death that became one of the reasons he became the person he was. And he was pretty sure Aisha knew that too, as she was avoiding to inflict any spells that would be fatal.

But with how things were now, he was starting to doubt himself, even after figuring out how to control his power with resolve. And that meant before long his phoenix flames would be just about useless.

_I need to snap out of this! I need to protect Aisha!_ he thought, trying to get his thoughts straight.

As Crimson made another run for Aisha, Elsword first punched himself in the face, trying to make himself focus on the here and now, and then ran over to intercept her.

As he used his blade to parry hers, he managed to force an opening once more on the thing that was his sister. Just as he was about to swing his blade forwards, he once again saw the memory of the kind and loving face of his sister.

He couldn't bring himself to attack her.

He couldn't try to dodge either, since Aisha was right behind him

And his hesitation had a heavy cost.

Elesis then brought the sword that was redirected a moment ago towards the air downwards, cutting Elsword diagonally across the chest.

Aisha screamed out "ELSWORD!" as she summoned a blast of wind to knock away the Crimson Avenger, who landed on her feet on the other side of the courtyard.

Aisha then dropped her staff to catch Elsword. She then laid him down and could barely hold in her panic as she looked at his wounds.

Elsword managed to block the worst of it with magic, but his chest was already red with the color of his own blood. She then quickly started to cast a healing spell. The magic from her hands closed the wound, but he had already lost a lot of blood. From what Aisha could tell, Elsword was barely conscious due to the blood he lost.

"Elsword! Please don't die!" she yelled at him with tears in his eyes.

He looked at her, a frown on his face as he looked at her tears, but then he noticed Crimson in the distance, walking towards them with her sword in hand.

He then wiped the tears off of Aisha's face as he told her "Don't worry about me, just get out of here."

She then yelled in response "NO! I'M NOT LOSING YOU!"

Meanwhile, Wally laughed from the opposite side of the courtyard as he spoke "How adorable you two are! I guess it would be fitting for you two to die together! Crimson!"

Crimson then stopped behind Aisha, her blade held up in the air, her demonic eyes looking at the two.

"Go ahead Crimson! Finish them both!" Wally yelled out his order.

But Crimson didn't move. Instead, a single tear fell down her face, which made his eyes widen in surprise.

_Is she…still in there?_ He thought.

Wally then barked "What are you waiting for!? Exterminate them!"

Elsword guessed it wouldn't be long before Elesis cut him down, but he wasn't willing to let his friend get caught up in this as well.

Elsword then yelled "Aisha! Run!"

But Aisha wouldn't move away. She couldn't bring herself to leave him.

Elesis then muttered quietly "I'm….sorry…"

Her blade then started to make a strike downwards.

Elsword then closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to watch.

But just as he closed them, a loud howling sound resonated through the entire city, followed by silence, save for the sound of metal clashing against metal.

"Seems you got yourself in quite the mess, eh Rune?" a masculine voice spoke.

Elsword opened his eyes, recognizing the voice. And he saw the man who had saved his life once saving him once again.

"S-Sensei!" he said in surprise, his voice slightly weak, yet filled with pleasant surprise.

His sensei was in a black coat, his eyes covered by a pair of ski goggles, and his face covered with a black face mask. His hair was slightly shaggy and blonde, partially going over his goggles and back of his mask. And on each of his hands was a black glovelike gauntlet that went up to his elbow, with three rhombus shaped blades on the three segments of the gauntlet that covered his arm.

But more importantly held a large revolver in his left hand, blocking Elesis's attack. As the momentum of her attack disappeared, he swung the pistol to the left, forcing Crimson to fly back towards the other side of the courtyard, and into the wall next to Wally.

Aisha looked at the man. He was tall, and looked exactly like what she saw in the picture in Elsword's apartment.

_So this…is Elsword's master…he couldn't have chosen a better time_ she thought as she catched her breath in relief. They were safe for the moment.

The man then turned around. Aisha couldn't tell what the man was thinking since his face was covered, but as he spoke, she got a general idea.

"Geesh, I leave here for a year or two, and not only does everything go to shit, but my student even tries to start a harem." He said with a short laugh.

Rune laughed a little before saying "It's not like that…and also, thank you."

The man then looked back for a second towards where Elesis was sent before saying "I'm guessing we don't have much time to talk, so I think you'll have to tell me what happened."

Elsword propped himself as he replied "Alright…" as a smile appeared on his face.

Then from across the plaza, a voice yelled "YOU…WOLFEN!"

Wolfen then turned towards the voice, which came from a now fuming Wally.

Wally then laughed maniacally as he said "I knew you would come, you wretched interloper!"

Wolfen then spoke "Oh I'm sorry, I was kinda busy elsewhere. If I knew you were looking for me, I would have given you a call." Aisha laughed as she realized where Elsword's sometimes cocky attitude came from.

Wally then shouted "Well, it doesn't make a difference! Because now, you'll die!" He then turned towards the freshly recovered Crimson and yelled " Crimson, activate EXECUTION mode!"

Elesis then replied "Yes sir" before holding up her sword. Her whole body then began to emit a malevolent black and red aura, and the white of her eyes became a deep black.

Wolfen then spoke "Well then, seems I need to teach you some manners then…" as a second revolver appeared in his other hand, though from Wally's view, he didn't notice it appeared out of thin air.

"Master…you can't fight her, she's my sister!" Elsword pleaded.

Wolfen looked at the boy, which made Elsword smile.

But then Wolfen unsummoned one of his pistols as he said:

"I'm sorry Rune"

Wolfen then flicked his finger at Elsword's head, the force of the flick knocking Elsword out instantly.

Aisha then stuttered "W-Why did yo-"

Wolfen then patted her head as he spoke "Because, I don't know if I can save her. And he doesn't need to watch his sister die again…so keep an eye on him, will you?"

Aisha, not expecting such an answer blankly spoke "O-okay"

Wolfen then turned back towards Elesis and Wally once more, his right hand once again holding the second revolver.

As she watched him walk away, she realized what he meant. That Elsword shouldn't have to experience such sorrow again. Even if it meant knocking him out so he wouldn't have to watch.

Wally then laughed as he spoke "Done with your goodbyes? Because this masterpiece was specifically designed to kill you! Now you will pay for what you did to me in Elder with your life, Howling Shadow!"

Wolfen then took a stance, holding his front gun upwards and his back on downwards as he said "Well, I doubt it can kill me, but give it your best shot then."

Wally then gritted his teeth as he yelled for Elesis to attack the gunman.

She then jumped forwards, her speed tripled from when she fought the Magician. But her attack was blocked as Wolfen held one gun in her path, and then swung his second gun at her ribs.

But unexpectedly, Elesis then disappeared from in front of him, her sword about to attack him from behind.

But he dashed to the front, dodging her attack as he said "Well, think you're fast now, aren't you?"

She then swung her sword back and forth between the air and ground, releasing red and black waves of energy towards Wolfen. But none of the attacks hit him as he wove through them.

As he got close, she made one more slash, this time summoning a large throwing star that she sent towards the Shadow.

This time, he couldn't dodge the attack and was sent flying towards the wall, causing pieces of it to fly into the air.

"Hah! How do you like that you plebian!?" Wally yelled in cheer.

But as the dust settled, it revealed that Elsword's master didn't even have a single scratch on him, which made Wally speak "W-what!?"

Wolfen brushed himself off as he said "Well, I'm guessing you didn't take into account how much stronger I would become, but that would have killed me the last time I was here."

Wally then yelled "Crimson, kill this revolutionary garbage!"

But before Crimson could react, Wolfen's voice spoke from behind her as he said "Now it's my turn."

Crimson turned back to block his next attack, but as his gun came into contact with her blade, she was sent flying backwards from the sheer power of his attack.

Just as Crimson attempted to land however, Wolfen appeared next to her with godlike speed, so fast that he broke the sound barrier in such a way it made a howling sound, and hit her in the stomach as he spun his gun in his hand upwards, send her up as well.

Wally watched with his mouth wide open as his prized creation flew upwards into the air. He had certainly not expected Wolfen to become this strong.

Meanwhile, Aisha watched in similar surprise, trying to comprehend the man's power.

Just as Crimson reached the peak of her flight upwards, Wolfen appeared in the air near her and aimed his guns towards her.

Then a bright white light erupted from his two revolvers, enveloping Crimson and sending her, or whatever remained of her, flying far away towards the West.

After the light disappeared, he landed on the ground with grace, and then directed his attention towards Wally.

Wally could tell immediately who Wolfen was looking at and then stumbled back in fear as he yelled "Stay away! Stay back you monster! Valaks! Stop him!"

Wolfen put away his revolvers as he said "Your reinforcements won't be coming anytime soon. I already took care of that.

As he spoke, across the city, the members of the allied forces cheered with slight confusion. While they were happy they survived, they were confused as to how every single Valak had suddenly fell to pieces, though a few admitted they saw a black blur, followed by the howling sound before the Valaks were destroyed.

And besides that, a mobile base and tank tracks in the West had been torn to shreds. Its purpose had been to manufacture more units in order to keep the battle in the Black Arms' favor. But unfortunately for the Black Arms engineers inside, it had been in Wolfen's path towards the city.

Wally had figured that just about every ray of hope for him was now gone as Wolfen told him there would be no reinforcements. After seeing his power, he had figured that the Howling Shadow had already taken care of them.

Wolfen then picked him off the ground by the collar and propped him against the wall.

Wally screamed "Please! Don't kill me! I don't want to die!"

But then, Wolfen reached for the edge of his goggles as he said "No, death is too good for you. You're going to pay the price you deserve."

As he moved his goggles, Wally could see the one of the man's eyes. It glew a bright green the iris. But as he saw it, Wally couldn't help but feel a fear that froze him in place. Even Aisha began to feel uneasy, noticing that it was some type of aura the man emitted that was causing her unease.

It was almost as if though he was face to face with a wolf-like beast. He then began to shiver in fear, realizing just what he had been up against.

Wolfen then put his hand on the forsaken king's forehead as he said "Now, pay the price for all the sins you have done! The price you deserve for destroying so many lives!"

As his hand touched Wally's forehead, Wally then started screaming in agony, even after the man removed his hand from his head.

As Wally fell to the floor, still screaming and holding his head as he suffered. Aisha looked in horror, trying to understand what just happened to the man who was laughing in victory only moments before.

As the man finally began to quiet down, he began to mutter

"I-I'm a monster….what have I….AGGGGGGHHHHH!" as he looked down at his hands.

Wolfen then walked over to Aisha, pulling his goggles back over his face as he said "What happened, is that he experienced every single sin he did from the side of the victim, forcing him to feel sympathy."

Aisha nodded, having a kind of idea of what he was talking about. She guessed he used some sort of technique that in a few second, that man was forced to experience the pain and suffering his own crimes caused.

Aisha spoke "I see…but isn't something like that ha-"

Wolfen cut her off as he said "I don't use it often, because its price is the user also has to…but anyhow, I don't see him going anywhere before everyone else shows up."

Aisha understood right away what he meant, and decided to drop the subject.

Aisha then looked down at the person she loved and let out a breath in relief. She then looked at the now departing smoke, revealing the sun shining through.

"I guess, it's finally over right?"

"For now, I suppose." He said before knelling down next to the two of them.

Wolfen then said "So, mind if I wake Rune up?"

Aisha, slightly confused said "S-sure…but how are you going to-"

He then slapped Elsword across the face, which at first appalled Aisha, but then Elsword opened his eyes, slightly dazed as he said "Ugh…I really hate that…I thought I wouldn't have to wake to that again…"

Aisha looked at him, slightly confused before he said "This is how I woke him up every time he went out cold during training unless I let him sleep it off." And from the tone of his voice, Aisha was pretty certain he had a familiar grin on his face.

Just then, Elsword's friends; Rena, Raven, Chung, Eve, and Ara made their way over towards the group.

"Elsword!" they said with glee as they went to hug him, met with him replying "Hey, injured man here guys!"

Aisha let out a tear, happy that it was finally over.

Edan walked over to them as well, giving Elsword a thumbs up as he passed him.

Edan then looked at the man who he suspected as the Howling Shadow and asked "So, you're Wolfen, right?"

Wolfen replied back as he spoke "Yes, and what do you need, police chief?"

Edan let out a sigh as he said "Well, I would congratulate you on stopping Wally, but…" as he pointed towards the castle.

Everyone turned their heads towards the castle, Elsword laughing the second he saw it.

The top half of the center tower was completely gone, destroyed by Wolfen's blast attack.

"Master always overdoes it! Hahahahah!"

Wolfen facepalmed himself in shame of causing the collateral damage, making the team laugh.

After Edan teased Wolfen for a few minutes, he said not to worry about it, since a majority of the city was damaged as is, while Elsword explained to the group what happened, and that the man in black was his master, causing them to be curious.

Wolfen told them "How about I answer your questions another time, you should all get some rest, considering you probably don't have school for a few days."

Vanessa, who just entered the courtyard spoke "Oh, I'm sure I can have them do some make up works!"

The gang laughed, which caused a few of them to wince in pain from their injuries.

* * *

_Palace Gates Wall, City of Velder, 9:00 am_

Soon enough, the group was sitting on the Palace wall watching the sunrise.

Chung spoke "Well, something tells me this was only the begging. After all, I didn't even see any demons."

Raven muttered "He does have a point."

Rena then nuggied the two of them as she said "Then we'll take em on when the time comes!"

"Yeah!" Ara spoke in agreement.

Eve looked at Chung as she said "No need to be a pessimist Chung."

Chung's face turned bright red as he replied "T-that's not w-what I meant!"

Meanwhile, Aisha and Elsword laughed as Chung tried to explain his reasoning in embarrassment.

She then whispered to Elsword "So, where did Wolfen go?"

Elsword shrugged as he answered "No idea, he tends to disappear on a whim."

"I see…"

Then all of the sudden, Ara kissed Eslword on the cheek before saying "I'm just happy you're okay Rune!"

Aisha then turned red as she yelled "Hey! Don't kiss him like that Ara!"

Ara turned towards her as she said "Oh, you mean do it like you did in the sewer?"

Aisha shouted "I told you I was saving his life!"

Everyone laughed as the two of them argued, but Elsword couldn't help but ponder for a moment about where his master could be.

But the thought left his mind as he went over to separate the two so they wouldn't try to kill each other.

_Near the Feita/Velder border, same time_

The person on Elsword's mind was currently traveling down a path of dirt in the forest that marked the border of Feita and Velder. The path was actually made due to the impact of something falling nearby.

He then looked back towards the city as he spoke "Well, guess Rune did well. Hopefully he'll be ready when the time comes."

He then turned back towards the dirt path and continued walking before saying "Hmm, just a little further I think…"

* * *

_Location Unknown, 10 am_

The room was dark to the point only vague silhouettes could be seen in the shadow.

One of them spoke, his voice deep and loud.

"It seems that idiot Wally has been defeated, and by the hands of the same man once again."

Another one of them laughed. Her voice was shrill and feminine, much like a witch.

"He was a fool. I told you I should have went instead! Kyahahahahaha!"

But then, another voice, a male one, spoke.

"That's enough."

The other two then ceased their laughter.

The third figure then spoke "Wally being captured is a great loss to our cause. His technology is part of the reason we have come so far."

The other two nodded, agreeing with the third figure.

"But…thanks to him, we have the one of the key pieces of our plan." The third figure spoke as he held up a gear like object in his hand. It was just as big as his hand, with a hole in the middle, surrounded by 6 differently colored jewels embedded into the gear-like object.

The third figure then let out a "Heh" before saying "And besides…"

Just as he spoke, on the other side of the room, three lights turned on, revealing three women, each of whom were imprisoned in large bird cages.

On the left was a women with red and yellow hair set in a ponytail, the color much like the flames of the volcanic region. Her clothes seemed to be older than the other two, considering the multitude of patches added to the rags that covered her skin.

In the middle was a girl with hair and eyes as blue as the ocean. As the light turned on, she sent a hateful gaze to her captors, as if though saying that she wouldn't surrender to them.

The last of them, on the right, was a small pale girl with blonde hair and bright yellow eyes. Unlike the other two, she was dressed in a white and yellow robe that had very few tears. She became frightened as the light was set upon her, as if though the people at the table, which was still pretty dark, were going to do something to her.

"We already have 3 of the priestesses in our custody!" he said with a bit of laughter. It was malevolent, like Wally's, except the figure's was deeper, and filled with much more malice.

The other two began to join in as well. It had been several years since this plan was sent into motion, and now it was beginning to come to fruition.

The figure then removed himself from the seat and walked towards the light.

As he walked towards it, he spoke once more.

"Soon, our goals shall be realized! And soon…"

As he walked into the light, it was revealed that he was a man in his younger thirties, wearing a blue jacket that he chose not to put his sleeves into. And his short hair was white with a tone of blue, the same color as the one part of his hair that went upwards in the front.

He then turned towards his companions as he spoke "WE WILL REVIVE OUR FALLEN GOD!", his red eyes filled with madness, desire, and destruction, much like the battlefields of war.

* * *

**Elsword: Well, guess season 1 is finally over**

**Aisha: Yep, and I have to say it's great we all survived**

**Wolfen: Yeah…except Vanessa and Noel are kinda mad at me for vaporizing the top half of the palace…**

**Chung: You have a point there, Elsword's sensei**

**Rena: And what's this I hear about Chung and Eve having a romantic moment?**

**Eve: Um, what do you mean?**

**Chung: Um Um It wasn't that! I swear!**

**Elsword: Sureeeee**

**Chung: And what about you!? Getting back up to Aisha's name and getting kissed on the cheek by Ara!?**

**Elsword: Uh Well…**

**Ara: I just wanted to thank him! And maybe leave an impression…**

**Aisha: …*blushing* is that really true?...**

**Rena: *interrogation mode activated* Elsword, tell me! Is it true you like Aisha like that!? But what about Ara!? Are you trying to two time!?**

**Elsword: *Being shook around by Rena* Renaaaaaaa stooooop!**

**Raven: …*turns away* no stopping her when she gets like that, good luck Els**

**Edan: …you have very interesting friends**

**Raven: You have no idea man…**

**Eve: Now that I think about it, I wonder if Add will show up next season?**

**Ara: Good question. I wonder what he's like? *she never saw him in the story yet***

**Add: Guys, I'm right here. What is with you all getting into character?**

**Everyone else other than WVH: Hmmmmmmm**

**Add: …really?**

**WVH: Don't worry, they'll notice soon enough**

**Wolfen: Well, besides him, I finally got my part! It was short, but worth it. I even hear WVH wants to include me in a filler story!**

**Everyone other than WVH, Elsword, and Wolfen: What!? No fair! I want one!**

**WVH: Uhhh…well thank you everyone for reading this story to the very end-**

**Everyone other than WVH, Elsword, and Wolfen: He's trying to cut us off!**

**WVH: -so be sure to R&amp;R, read some of the other stories to come, and come back when we start season 2!**

**Everyone other than WVH, Elsword, And Wolfen: *becomes an angry mob* GET HIM!**

**WVH: So see you all next time! *runs from the angry mob***


End file.
